College ward councillor encourages students to speak up during 2025 city budget consultation
College ward councillor Laine Johnson said students can make an enormous difference when they offer concerns and opinions to elected officials.
“I speak on behalf of students a lot, but the more specific examples I can have, the more personal stories we can hear, I think the more likely we are to generate that shared understanding,” said Johnson, who represents the area of Algonquin College on city council.
Johnson will be joined by Theresa Kavanagh and Sean Devine, councillors of Bay ward and Knoxdale-Merivale ward, respectively, on Oct. 7 to consult the community regarding the 2025 city budget.
The meeting is the first of 11 such events and the only one involving the College ward. Johnson said it would be extremely powerful for students to attend and voice their concerns.
“I can name you three or four different meetings where we’ve had young people come out from various post-secondaries, whether it’s Carleton or Algonquin and councillors will thank them directly,” said Johnson.
Jonathan Parker, a professor of media studies at Algonquin College who has spent much of his career in politics, said this is a great opportunity for students, who often complain about their elected officials, to see how the process unfolds.
“Is it going to be the most fun you’ve ever had? Probably not. Is it going to be informative? Yeah, you’re going to learn something,” said Parker. “Go and see it, go and be a part of it and learn that democracy isn’t as broken as many of us walk around thinking it is.”
The meeting is virtual and will run from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The meeting requires pre-registration which can be found here.
According to Parker, witnessing the budget process can help restore faith in the political system.
“I can’t stress enough how disarming it is to put students in front of the political process. We have our perceptions about politics. We see the negative parts that are just kind of fed to us,” said Parker. “For the most part, when we go and watch it in real time, virtually or otherwise, we can see that it’s thoughtful people having discussions about the best way to manage our communities.”
Adam Hassan, a Level 1 human services foundation student, said public transit could use more attention. Hassan said buses are often late and some can get overcrowded.
“My experiences so far (with public transit) have been decent, except for the 88 Terry Fox, which was overall not a very good experience,” said Hassan.
The city has found public transit budget shortfalls totalling $120 million and the finance and corporate services committee has recommended correcting actions in a budget directions report.
The proposed actions include a fare increase, a transit levy increase and service reductions.
Parker said students who wish to raise concerns about an issue and are nervous should find like-minded people and attend the meeting as a group.
“I think it’s completely fair to have a bunch of like-minded students attend the meeting to reinforce the message and to try and at least demonstrate that there’s a certain critical mass of people who want a push in a particular direction,” said Parker. “There’s also value in not necessarily having a position but going there to listen. Just seeing the process unfold is disarming.”
Hassan said he has never attended a municipal meeting but would not be surprised if students decided to participate in Monday’s edition.
“The bus routes are very, very important to a lot of people, especially people who can’t afford a car,” said Hassan.
Johnson said students who are too nervous or busy to attend the meeting can contact her anytime through the College ward website.
“Please let me know what’s going on for you in this area, around the college, because I am listening,” said Johnson.
