The Board of Directors of the University of Groningen and the Hanze University of Applied Sciences have decided to stop charging international students to stay in the tents on the ACLO grounds at Zernike.
Translation by Traci White
RTV Noord reports that student factions in the University Council implored the board to stop charging international students for staying in the tents, which is set up to help make sure the students do not end up on the streets while searching for a room in the city. Students who have paid for the accommodations, which were 12.50 per night, will get their money back.
The student parties are also arguing for changes to the costs involved with staying on a hotel boat – currently, international students are being charged 42.95 a night to stay there. The board is reportedly considering revisiting the issue.
SOG, DAG and Lijst Calimero were pleased to hear that the tents would now be free of charge, but they still expressed concerns about how untenable the current housing situation is. “International students are of course welcome to study here, but you should not be actively recruiting them to come here if there is no housing available”, says Lijst Calimero chairperson Henk-Jan Wondergem.
Editor’s note: the lead of this story has been updated to reflect that the board of the Hanze also contributed to the decision to cease charging students to stay in the tents.
