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A , L 0 0 K A T A. F. s.

WHAT IS AFS?

The Atlantic Federation of Students (AFS) is the regional organization of post-secon- dary students in the four Atlantic Provinces. Through AFS, students are able to voice their cont erns to govern-

. ment, research areas of con- cern, and gatrer and exchange needed information.

WHY A REGIONAL STUDENT ORGANIZATION?

Student organizations re- emerged in Canada during the early 1970's. The NUS was developed by concerned stu- dent unions across the coun- try in order to represent the interests of students at the national level. At the same time a number of provincial and regional student organiza- tions were formed in order to deal with matters of provincial concern and to localize the work of the NUS. The kind of student organization devel- oped in the Atlantic is unique in the country because it is the only regional association.

As a region the Atlantic suffers the common effects of economic underdevelopment. This happens because re—

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sources are constantly being drained away from the Atlantic to other parts of the country and the world. As a result the Atlantic is the poorest region in Canada. Governments and businessmen alike have recog- nized this and have banned together to form the Council of Maritime Premiers and the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council. The governments make collective policies, often on the advice of the APEC, which effect every citizen in the Atlantic. A major area of this collectivedecision making

is that of higher education. I

The formation of the Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission in the mid-70's was a major event in the regionalizing of education policy.

it is this political and economic reality of the At- lantic which demands that students organize on a re— gional basis. Students can achieve more in the Atlantic if they come together to form a strong regional organization than if they were to organize solely within their own prov- inces.

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WHAT IS THE STRUCTURE OF AFS?

Membership in the organi- zation is based on campus referenda. If students decide to join, $1.00 is added to their student union fee and is collected for AFS. AFS pres- ently has 15 members and

. represents over 20,000 stu-

dents. The members provide direc- tion to the executive. de-

termine policy, and have the

primary responsibility for maintaining AFS activity on their campuses Twice yearly conferences develop the pri- orities and policies of the organization.

The most important link in the structure of the organiza- tion is the campus coordinator who is appointed by student council. Within each province there are Caucus Chairs who are responsible for the work at the provincial levels. Two people oversee the

the‘

work of the entire region: the

treasurer and the secretary coordinator. One NUS Central Committee person also sits on the AFS executive.

WHAT DOES AFs,_p_o'>

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The Federation works on such issues as student aid, zcutbacks to education, un- employment, and tuition in- creases.

The AFS has lobbied the provincial governments to in- crease student representation on government committees. in Nova Scotia, for instance, three students are nominated yearly to sit on student aid committees. These students guarantee their fellow stu- dents a sympathetic ear when it comes, to hearing student aid appeals and to advising

the government on studentaid \

changes. The student reps. seek regular input from stu- dents at the AFS caucus meetings and conferences. Unemployment was the pri- ority forwork during 1977 / 78. While it was difficult to actually engage students in this work at the campus level, AFS in cooperation with NUS, branched out into the com- munity and was actively in- volved in building unemploy- ment coalitions. A side effect of this was a low AFS presence on many of the campuses during the past

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year. By the spring of '_78 the organization _reordered its pri- orities and commenced solid work on educational cutbacks and tuition increases.

Together with the NUS, AFS carried out a successful lobby protesting the federal government’s proposed loan ceiling increase. During the spring of ’78 AFS organized a regionwide petition campaign protesting the ever decreasing funding levels to the univer- sities. At the same time the organization lobbied the pro- vincial governments for stu- dent representation on the MPHEC. This was a sUccess and now Terry Morrison, a past Acadia student, sits on that body.

Sometimes students run ahead of their leadership. This happened in Newfoundland this year when 3500 students demonstrated against the gov- ernment’s decision to impose severe cutbacks on Memorial. AFS supported the students through organizational, finan- cial and moral assistance.

Last year the AFS organized ‘ support for a student on the ‘ Acadia campus who was ‘

involved in a precedent-set- ting court case with the administration. Over $1000.00 was raised to help cover legal fees for the student. ' AFS also tries to maintain a high level of communications

.between, studentacouncils in

the region. To this end the AFS has recently. introduced a bi-weekly newsletter to keep students-informed'of happen- ings in the region. WHAT DOES AFS HOPE TO DO IN THE FUTURE?’ Compared to other student organizations across the country AFS is a low budget organization. Nonetheless, it is an ambitious organization that wants to serve Atlantic students. in addition to con- tinuing the newsletter, AFS hope to enter a cooperative arrangement ,with a campus newspaper in order to produce a bi-monthly regional student

.newspaper along the lines of

the NUS ADVOCATE. The paper would serve to articulate the needs and concerns of Atlantic students.

Immediate plans include the continued development of the National anti-cutbacks campaign, a reopening of communications with regional groups such as the Asso- ciation' of Atlantic Univer- sities, and a-close monitoring of the MPHEC, and the eco'; nomic policies of the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council. The AFS is going to attempt to send' an observer to the October conference of APEC in Charlottetown.

ALL STUDENTS CAN PAR- TICIPATE We can only build a strong regional organization with the active participation of the students on :the campuses. Should you wish to par- ticipate, comment or make suggestions on AFS activity, please contact your student union and / or phone or write: .Atlantic Pederation of 'Students

1652 Barrington St., Halifax, NS.

33.: 2A2 (902) 423-4705

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