UWI students facing lockout for non-payment of hall fees
Published:Sunday | May 6, 2018 | 12:00 AMRomario Scott/Gleaner Writer
Some of the students occupying Irvine Hall on the Mona campus of the University of the West Indies are worried that they are being put in harm's way by the action of administrators over fees owed.
They complained that they have not been able to access their rooms because the administrators are clamping down on those who are delinquent in paying for the residence.
"The system is very strict. If you owe a cent, it will not allow you to get in, and I believe that is dangerous to students. We understand that fees need to be paid, but to take such drastic action shows you that these people do not care about the safety of UWI students.
"If they don't care about our safety, then they do not deserve our money," a final-year student, who is also a resident on the hall, told The Gleaner.
The UWI, Mona, guild, which represents students on the campus, has taken issue with residents being locked out.
The guild has called on the student services development manager at Irvine Hall and the director of the Office of Student Services to "find a more suitable alternative to addressing this situation".
According to the guild, Principal Archibald McDonald has expressed concerns regarding the practice and has supported the call for a less drastic manner to receive money owed to the hall.
Fees for the hall were advertised as $270,000 for single rooms and $225,000 for double occupancy.