Students Call For a Delay to the Implementation of Performance-Based Funding in the Wake of COVID-19
Edmonton, AB - On January 20th, 2020, Alberta’s Minister of Advanced Education announced a new “outcomes-based post-secondary funding approach” to be implemented on April 1, 2020. Instead of block grants, institutions will be held to performance-based funding (PBF) metrics that they must meet in order to receive their full annual funding grant. These metrics will be outlined in three-year funding agreements, which is a drastic change from the current annual renewal model.
This fundamental shift in funding allocation has raised significant concerns with university students across Alberta. There are few specifics around what metrics will be used, the timeline is shockingly short for a change of this magnitude, and the recent impact of COVID-19 on universities has not been considered. Furthermore, universities responding to COVID-19 are operating at capacity. Transitions to online course delivery and ensuring remote access to services are only two examples of the current challenges that universities are grappling with. CAUS is calling on the Government of Alberta to delay implementation of performance-based funding in light of the unprecedented circumstances that universities are facing in light of COVID-19.
“With building closures and the transition to online course delivery, post-secondary institutions are overwhelmed. Students are overwhelmed. We have called for funding metrics in this new model to be developed over a longer period of time to allow for meaningful consultation and careful consideration of research-based evidence,” CAUS Chair Sadiya Nazir stated. “CAUS again calls on the Government of Alberta and Minister Nicolaides for a delay in the rollout of performance-based post-secondary institutional funding, especially considering the unprecedented measures in place due to COVID-19.”
“The devil is in the details with performance-based funding, as we’ve seen in other jurisdictions,” stated CAUS Vice Chair Bailey Harry. “Delaying the performance-based funding model past April 1, 2020, would be in the best interest of students, institutions and the government. This would allow more time for careful consideration of metrics and limit unintended consequences.”
CAUS represents over 100,000 undergraduate students from the University of Alberta, the University of Calgary, the University of Lethbridge, Mount Royal University, and MacEwan University.
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