Ancillary fees are non-opt-outable fees that are imposed by McGill university in addition to tuition costs. 

Motion regarding the increase to the WUSC Student Refugee Program Fee: “Yes” 

The World University Services Canada (WUSC) is a non-profit group that operates on various campuses across the country. WUSC leads the Student Refugee Program (SRP) which provides refugees with the opportunity to study in their country of refuge. Currently, the fee levy of $0.50 is insufficient to cover the costs of two refugee students, and so WUSC has been using its endowment to support a third. Without a fee increase, WUSC will have to reduce the number of students covered by the SRP. The increase to $2.00 not only accounts for inflation since the fee’s creation in 1986, it also empowers the SRP to be a sustainable program. Given the global refugee crisis, McGill students should demonstrate their commitment to supporting refugees in acquiring education by voting “Yes” to this ancillary fee question. 

Motion Regarding the Renewal of the Access McGill Ancillary Fee: “Yes”

McGill suffers from a variety of accessibility problems, such as a lack of flexibility in receiving academic accommodations and an overburdened Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD). Without the renewal of this fee, these issues would only be exacerbated. The Access McGill fee supports the OSD, which provides invaluable direct services for students, such as the peer note-taking program, and is used to improve physical spaces and purchase equipment for the university. While it is necessary for students to support this question to maintain the current level of service provision, there must be a stronger movement to support accessibility on campus. Students must be aware that this fee does not mean that accessibility problems are ‘resolved’ on campus. It must be viewed as the bare minimum, and more concrete steps must be taken in the future to improve upon it. 

Motion Regarding the Renewal of the McGill Writing Centre Ancillary Fee: “Yes”

The McGill Writing Centre provides free assistance to students. Tutors not only edit essays, they also provide one-on-one guidance and suggestions—something that is particularly rare and treasured in the McGill setting. Moreover, the centre employs students. It also provides assistance for essays written in French, and provides support for those who speak English as a second language.