Post Election Debate over University Reformation

Brazil’s new university legislation raises controversy during the campus election at Federal University of Santa Catarina.

The Brazilian Constitution guarantees a minimum of 27 percent of the budget must go towards education. The new legislation changed the process of how public universities receive money.

Before the reform, public universities were given money for specific needs. Congress now pays the bills for specific needs instead of giving the university a set amount of money.

The government now has more control of where money is being spent within the universities.

The staff workers at Federal University of Santa Catarina went on strike last year because they wanted raises in their salaries and for unfair hiring practices.

For two months the students could not use the library and had no places to eat on campus.

To counter these conditions the students invaded the university administration building and locked the people in for four hours to end the strike.

Mixed opinions concerning the invasion and the new university legislation split the students into two political parties that ran for the Central Directory.

The strikes caused an extra-shortened semester during summer break to make up for the lost school days.

“I have been at this school four years but have had only two summer breaks, because of all the strikes,” said Luiz Villa, an engineering student.

Villa voted for the Student Movement {red} party because he believed that the university legislation needed more changes.

Congress can now deny paying certain bills. The red party believes that the new legislation will cause un-balanced spending in different departments of the university.

The yellow party is in favor of the new changes in the university legislation. They believe that Congress can efficiently manage the university budget.

“There are a lot of political questions to be raised, but we must applause the changes that we think are good and criticize the bad parts [in the university legislation]” said Gustavo Chraim, the president of the Central Directory of the Students.

Both parties agree contradiction in the new legislation remains. For example, the national capital can own up to 30 percent of the university. The students do not want to allow any ownership.

“The law is not a way for congress to get money, it gives us the ability to spend money where we think is best,” Chraim said.

“Philosophy majors are just hippies with their head up in the sky, they won’t make the same contributions to society as the engineers,” said Diogo Figueiredo, a law student who voted for the yellow party. He believes that it is fair to give more money to different departments.

At first glance most of the parties campaigning promised the same things such as, expanding the campus dorms which hold 153 rooms when their are over 30,000 students attending UFSC; enlarging the overcrowded University Restaurant; and providing free health care from University Hospital for the students.

“I didn’t vote because [the parties] are both the same” said senior, Daniel Pereira. Lack of student involvement makes change more difficult.

“The red was more radical,” said Elani Almeida, a journalism student. The red party was last year’s Student Central Directory, but this year they wanted to make more changes within the new University legislation.

MUDE, the Democratic Movement (yellow) won with 2,835 votes. The Student Movement (red) came in second place with 2,310 votes. The other two parties received less than 300 votes combined.

What is your opinion about current Education Legislation?

To learn more about Brazil Universtiy Reformation go to: http://portal.mec.gov.br/

What is your opinion about current Education Legislation?

Related article: New DCE will prioritize quarrels on the University Reformation

More articles: DCE Archives

For more information about UFSC visit http://www.ufsc.br

Education Legislation is the United States: Department of Education