The Maple Leaf Education MOU is a Disappointment
KPU is disrespecting local students by going forward with the project
Alyssa Laube, Associate Editor
The term “MOU” hasn’t done much to help the university’s reputation as of late.
Back in 2015, President Alan Davis signed a memorandum of understanding with Kinder Morgan’s environmentally damaging Trans Mountain Expansion Project, and was later shamed into terminating the partnership. Now the university has signed another controversial MOU, this time with Maple Leaf Educational Systems, an organisation that allows students to achieve high school diplomas in both China and Canada simultaneously. They do this through establishing offshore schools, one of which will soon be at KPU, which means that Chinese high school students will be using space that was originally allocated for KPU students.
This announcement hasn’t gone over smoothly in the community. From the student level up to members of the Board of Governors, people are voicing their concerns about a lack of room, culture, and attention being paid to local students on-campus.
The argument that Sal Ferreras and Alan Davis, who are both strongly backing the project, is the same one that is being used against them. The justification of the MOU is that it will potentially bring in big tuition bucks for KPU. Getting international high school students interested in our institution will likely bring them back with money in-hand, and getting our name into their circles is a surefire way of guaranteeing that they’ll consider us as a viable option for their post-secondary career.
That’s all fine and dandy for the executives in charge, but for students and professors trying to make due with the little space and funding we’re afforded, it’s a slap in the face.
By signing this MOU, the university is telling Canadian students that we’re nothing but dollars to them, and that our value isn’t high enough to hold their interest. Instead, they’re going to young Chinese students to lead them into a tuition trap that’s twice as costly as it is for students who were born here. Meanwhile, individuals and groups are having trouble booking rooms for events.
A main concern being raised is inefficient consultation leading up to the approval of the MOU. Although Ferreras was conducting consultations, it seems that many members of the community weren’t asked for their opinions and that, if they were, no follow-up occurred. So far, the Kwantlen Student Association, Sustainable Agriculture Students Association, Kwantlen Faculty Association, and KPU Biology department have publicly spoken out against the agreement. Regardless, it was passed.
This comes as a disappointment for KPU students. If the university is solidifying its stance on taking care of its local students—with small class sizes and serving people in the Fraser Valley supposedly a key part of its identity—the future isn’t looking promising. KPU is supposed to be an institution that cares more about its community than the big players in the industry like SFU and UBC. As the institution grows and gets hungrier for money and influence, local students might get left behind. At least, that’s what this MOU indicates.
