Offices of the University of Ottawa barricaded by its students OTTAWA, ON, 24 May 2012 Students at the University of Ottawa

have decided to barricade their university's administration from their offices this morning in opposition to a tuition fee increase proposed by the administration this past April 2nd. The protesters are demanding that the University administration reverse their decision and freeze tuition fees for the upcoming academic year. Students in Ontario pay the highest tuition fees in the country, and have a collective student debt of over $9 billion. "Despite their assurances of consulting students to identify possible cuts in the budget that would avoid increases in tuition fees, they [the University] have not conducted such consultations," said Nicole Desnoyers, student in Women's Studies and Sociology, and undergraduate student representative on the University's Board of Governors. Without exploring the possibility of identifying savings in the University's budget, students at the University of Ottawa face the risk of having to accept a larger bill for their studies in the coming year. On April 2nd, the Board of Governors decided to increase tuition fees by 5% for the academic year beginning this September. The University has not yet adopted a budget for the upcoming year, maintaining the possibility of avoiding a 6th consecutive increase in tuition fees. Students at the University of Ottawa are hoping for a reversal in the decision to increase fees before adoption of the budget, currently set for next Monday.-30-For more information or to schedule an interview, please contact: Nicole Desnoyers Campaigns organiser and student in women's studies and sociology Student Federation of the University of Ottawa