From April 3rd-7th Dan and Graeme spoke with students in Victoria about their post-secondary educational experience. They interviewed Daniel, who is back in college as an adult, about how education helped him with his music business and career goals (he also played a set for us later that night!); and with Parker, an MA student in clinical counselling at the University of Victoria, about how his education and work experience led him on his unique career path.

While in Victoria they also continued their pledge card campaign, having a great deal of success with the patrons at Gorgeous Coffee and with students at the University of Victoria bus loop especially.

On March 25th Graeme and Dan traveled to Langley to talk to Rich, a safety coordinator at a trailer assembly plant, about his experiences in post-secondary education and the burden so much student debt can place on working families.

On March 22nd, ETEA recorded its fourth Open the Doors BC podcast at the Federation of Post-Secondary Educators office in Vancouver. Norman and Nicole told us their favorite highlights from the Open the Doors campaign so far and discussed some of the important projects the colleges and universities in BC are organizing.

On March 17th, ETEA conducted its third podcast at the ETEA office. Current  union president, Kevin, and past president, Michael, explained the ETEA’s past and present. Over its history, ETEA has improved the ESL industry for teachers and has been involved with lobbying the government for better regulations for private colleges in BC.

Over the following weeks Dan and Graeme filmed two more video interviews with ETEA members Katie and Jay, who both provided valuable insights into the importance of post-secondary education in their own lives and careers, and about the burden student debt can impose.

The week of March 6th was a busy one as Graeme and Dan talked to lots of people at the Commercial-Broadway SkyTrain Station asking them to sign pledge cards to restore funding to post-secondary education. The response was good, and it turns out many people don’t know there is a post-secondary funding crisis in BC!

On March 6th, we filmed our second video with Bibi, an ETEA teacher from Local 1. Bibi told us about her education and the difficulties she had faced taking on so much student debt. Bibi is interested in music, so we filmed her doing her hobby in a local park.

They also conducted their second podcast in a round table discussion with members of ETEA Local 6 about the importance of college and university in their lives.

Later that week Graeme and Dan filmed the first in their video series with Local 1 member Dan, who talked about the significance of public post-secondary education in his own life and career. Dan and Graeme also interviewed each other for the first in the ETEA’s series of “Open the Doors BC” podcasts in the ETEA office.

On February 27th, ETEA started its campaign on behalf of the Federation of Post-Secondary Educators‘ Open the Doors BC initiative to restore funding to post-secondary education in this province. We are conducting interviews with people who have experience in college and university in BC and creating YouTube videos and audio podcasts to record their views. If you’d like to contribute to this important campaign before April 11th please let us know. And don’t forget to vote for a government that values students, faculty and staff on May 9th!