Hell hath no fury like a student denied
Dear Editor:
I read this morning in the London Free Press an article regarding the government's new rebate that is supposedly going to help students and families that are struggling, and I am shaken to my core with anger in realising that I do not meet the eligibility criteria.
While criteria has been hard to find and the details of this rebate are under-publicised, in talking with fellow classmates, I know that there are those in situations worse than my own and I wish to speak on their behalf as well. The government's college and university tuition rebate is to help those who have graduated high school within the last four years and who have parents with a combined household income of $160,000 or less. Once again, the government is willing to help those more fortunate!
I am so full of rage that I am going to publicise the very intimate and embarrassing details of my personal life/financial struggle. While I am doing this, I know that I am only one voice to be heard, but I am representing many Canadians who are on the same raft — we can't afford boats! I also know that I am representing only one brand of Canadian and that there are several others in similar situations needing the same assistance. I am ashamed to say that Canada discriminates!
As a personal choice, I left home at the age of 15. I worked and dropped out of high school at the end of grade 10. I then went to hairdressing school at the age of 16 and graduated with my licence and went to work at this and that for several years, always chasing the ever elusive bigger dollar. When I was 19, I started working in a factory and taking part-time classes to complete my grade 12 diploma. I also worked part-time as a hairstylist because the amount of insurance I paid on my car, car loan, rent, etc. was barely coverable by my earnings in the factory. I was determined and anxious to go to school because many campaigns encouraging education promised me a better life. And so, in 1999, at the age of 25, I went to college for a year and found the confidence to proceed with university. Of course, in doing this, I also had to apply for and use government loans, which at the end of my four years left me with an overwhelming debt load and what else??? NO JOB! My salvation in life has been my hairstyling licence. I have always been able to fall back on it for work. In an attempt to make myself employable in a more lucrative field, I took a semester of Human Resources, but was bored by it and started my own business. Luckily for me, I have always had a keen sense of entrepreneurship. I still always wished I could return to school, but no, I had over $30,000 in student loan debt and other debts. I had to find work. So, like many Canadians, I found opportunity in the United States and gave that a whirl. I am pleased to say that my Canadian work experiences had provided me with a better example of work ethics and morals and so I returned to Canada after only six months. My return was in 2006. This past summer (2011), a segment of our government contacted me to say that they had no record of my return to Canada in 2006 although I have always been a diligent tax filer! The resentment boiled within me, knowing that I am unable to attain gainful employment and our government lacks the competence to track its own citizens. And now I have to wait months for a reassessment of my 2005 income taxes because they processed my return as though I were an immigrant. No doubt they owe me money or I would have heard from them by now! Upon my return to Canada, the only jobs I could find were in sales. I hated every single one of them! I don't like taking people's money when they aren't getting what they paid for. I wish our government had the same conscientiousness. For the first time in my life, at age 33, I was on unemployment and was eligible for a small business start-up program with the government. And so, I started my current hairstyling business in 2008 and have been struggling with that to make ends meet for the last three years. I struggled so much that in early 2011, I had to file for bankruptcy. My debt load, lack of income and inability to find a second job forced me into a corner where I felt I needed to choose… bankruptcy or suicide. I chose bankruptcy because, for some reason, all of the struggle and all of the fight that I have fought wouldn't be worth walking away from. I love life and I want to live. I am not proud of filing for bankruptcy. I have been an independent and responsible person all of my life, but I could not take on my financial woes anymore. They had beat me into the ground!
I have learned to live a cash life and I am dependent on every dollar I can get my hands on. I have now gone back to school... AGAIN! And sirs and madams of the ones making the rules, I learned in university that I could not buy Christmas gifts for my loved ones because it caused me greater debt, and so, no, I wasn't out shopping or partying, I was working for a family member in my spare time throughout November and through the Christmas holiday season to earn money for my first semester's tuition. I am no longer eligible for your loans that lead to years and years of payments and life deprivation and I no longer want them! You can keep your loans. They are toxic to anyone starting out in life.
However, you bring about a promise to help and then discriminate upon those who shall behold this glorious gift. I bet even the households with a combined $160,000 income had presents under their tree. I will be filing an income of $25,000 this year before taxes. When you're done with me, I will no doubt owe you more money I don't have. It sickens me that I make less than onesixth of the criteria income and I am deemed ineligible for the tuition grant that you so graciously want to give to those who I consider wealthy.
If anyone has extra work around their homes... painting, window washing... I will be trying to earn money for the rest of my schooling since the government thinks I already have enough to get by and pay our province's ridiculous tuition fees.
Cassandra Nadalin
Law Clerk Program
Fanshawe College
Editorial opinions or comments expressed in this online edition of Interrobang newspaper reflect the views of the writer and are not those of the Interrobang or the Fanshawe Student Union. The Interrobang is published weekly by the Fanshawe Student Union at 1001 Fanshawe College Blvd., P.O. Box 7005, London, Ontario, N5Y 5R6 and distributed through the Fanshawe College community. Letters to the editor are welcome. All letters are subject to editing and should be emailed. All letters must be accompanied by contact information. Letters can also be submitted online by clicking here.
I read this morning in the London Free Press an article regarding the government's new rebate that is supposedly going to help students and families that are struggling, and I am shaken to my core with anger in realising that I do not meet the eligibility criteria.
While criteria has been hard to find and the details of this rebate are under-publicised, in talking with fellow classmates, I know that there are those in situations worse than my own and I wish to speak on their behalf as well. The government's college and university tuition rebate is to help those who have graduated high school within the last four years and who have parents with a combined household income of $160,000 or less. Once again, the government is willing to help those more fortunate!
I am so full of rage that I am going to publicise the very intimate and embarrassing details of my personal life/financial struggle. While I am doing this, I know that I am only one voice to be heard, but I am representing many Canadians who are on the same raft — we can't afford boats! I also know that I am representing only one brand of Canadian and that there are several others in similar situations needing the same assistance. I am ashamed to say that Canada discriminates!
As a personal choice, I left home at the age of 15. I worked and dropped out of high school at the end of grade 10. I then went to hairdressing school at the age of 16 and graduated with my licence and went to work at this and that for several years, always chasing the ever elusive bigger dollar. When I was 19, I started working in a factory and taking part-time classes to complete my grade 12 diploma. I also worked part-time as a hairstylist because the amount of insurance I paid on my car, car loan, rent, etc. was barely coverable by my earnings in the factory. I was determined and anxious to go to school because many campaigns encouraging education promised me a better life. And so, in 1999, at the age of 25, I went to college for a year and found the confidence to proceed with university. Of course, in doing this, I also had to apply for and use government loans, which at the end of my four years left me with an overwhelming debt load and what else??? NO JOB! My salvation in life has been my hairstyling licence. I have always been able to fall back on it for work. In an attempt to make myself employable in a more lucrative field, I took a semester of Human Resources, but was bored by it and started my own business. Luckily for me, I have always had a keen sense of entrepreneurship. I still always wished I could return to school, but no, I had over $30,000 in student loan debt and other debts. I had to find work. So, like many Canadians, I found opportunity in the United States and gave that a whirl. I am pleased to say that my Canadian work experiences had provided me with a better example of work ethics and morals and so I returned to Canada after only six months. My return was in 2006. This past summer (2011), a segment of our government contacted me to say that they had no record of my return to Canada in 2006 although I have always been a diligent tax filer! The resentment boiled within me, knowing that I am unable to attain gainful employment and our government lacks the competence to track its own citizens. And now I have to wait months for a reassessment of my 2005 income taxes because they processed my return as though I were an immigrant. No doubt they owe me money or I would have heard from them by now! Upon my return to Canada, the only jobs I could find were in sales. I hated every single one of them! I don't like taking people's money when they aren't getting what they paid for. I wish our government had the same conscientiousness. For the first time in my life, at age 33, I was on unemployment and was eligible for a small business start-up program with the government. And so, I started my current hairstyling business in 2008 and have been struggling with that to make ends meet for the last three years. I struggled so much that in early 2011, I had to file for bankruptcy. My debt load, lack of income and inability to find a second job forced me into a corner where I felt I needed to choose… bankruptcy or suicide. I chose bankruptcy because, for some reason, all of the struggle and all of the fight that I have fought wouldn't be worth walking away from. I love life and I want to live. I am not proud of filing for bankruptcy. I have been an independent and responsible person all of my life, but I could not take on my financial woes anymore. They had beat me into the ground!
I have learned to live a cash life and I am dependent on every dollar I can get my hands on. I have now gone back to school... AGAIN! And sirs and madams of the ones making the rules, I learned in university that I could not buy Christmas gifts for my loved ones because it caused me greater debt, and so, no, I wasn't out shopping or partying, I was working for a family member in my spare time throughout November and through the Christmas holiday season to earn money for my first semester's tuition. I am no longer eligible for your loans that lead to years and years of payments and life deprivation and I no longer want them! You can keep your loans. They are toxic to anyone starting out in life.
However, you bring about a promise to help and then discriminate upon those who shall behold this glorious gift. I bet even the households with a combined $160,000 income had presents under their tree. I will be filing an income of $25,000 this year before taxes. When you're done with me, I will no doubt owe you more money I don't have. It sickens me that I make less than onesixth of the criteria income and I am deemed ineligible for the tuition grant that you so graciously want to give to those who I consider wealthy.
If anyone has extra work around their homes... painting, window washing... I will be trying to earn money for the rest of my schooling since the government thinks I already have enough to get by and pay our province's ridiculous tuition fees.
Cassandra Nadalin
Law Clerk Program
Fanshawe College
Editorial opinions or comments expressed in this online edition of Interrobang newspaper reflect the views of the writer and are not those of the Interrobang or the Fanshawe Student Union. The Interrobang is published weekly by the Fanshawe Student Union at 1001 Fanshawe College Blvd., P.O. Box 7005, London, Ontario, N5Y 5R6 and distributed through the Fanshawe College community. Letters to the editor are welcome. All letters are subject to editing and should be emailed. All letters must be accompanied by contact information. Letters can also be submitted online by clicking here.
