Last week, I sat down with Grace Clark, President of The 93% Club, to discuss current events on campus. Recent controversies at the University of Edinburgh surrounding classism, accent discrimination, and university budget cuts are nothing new for Grace Clark and The 93% Club, the self-proclaimed “least exclusive members’ club.”
Grace emphasised a need to protect extra support for disadvantaged students at university, labelled “Widening Participation” (WP) by the University of Edinburgh. Since discovering the group in first year, she described the sense of community and “shared experience” found in other 93% club members.
Being President for the last two years, Grace has been involved in several of The 93% Club’s campaigns. When asked what she was proudest of, she referred to the classism and accent discrimination training the group ran with staff, describing how “incredibly fulfilling” it is to see the difference it’s made for WP students.
Accent discrimination is both a personal and systemic issue at Edinburgh, Grace explains. Feeling alienated and that “it’s not about what you say, but how you’ve said [it]” makes students feel excluded, with both staff and students making people question: “Why don’t I sound like everybody else?”
She added: “I think people are very surprised that it’s staff that can be guilty of the classism as well. It is those side comments from staff that can almost be more damaging.”
Students thus continue to face discrimination from a variety of actors on campus, heightened recently by news about the university’s financial instability.
Grace said that she’s worried about the impact of proposed budget cuts, as initiatives increasing access for students “are usually the first to go.” The framing of WP students as “costing the university money” only reinforces the idea that those students are “a burden to the uni and uni finances.”
When asked about the university’s decision to increase accommodation rents by 7 per cent for the next academic year, Grace said this will “price people out” and “there’s just no [affordable accommodation] options for students” anymore.
She cited a lack of transparency from the University of Edinburgh as a key barrier for WP students, saying scholarships, jobs, and funding were not advertised well enough.
The reluctance to talk about money at open days is because the University is worried “it’ll put people off” Grace explains. “People are already thinking about this [money]” and greater financial transparency would be reassuring for both prospective and current students.
It’s these little things that make WP students feel out of place in Edinburgh, she concludes. “Pitiful student finance” and university policies on extensions and office hours that do not accommodate students with part-time jobs all reinforce the stigma that Grace has spent the last four years trying to shake; the idea that “people like you don’t go to places like this.”
The President emphasises the club’s “good working relationship” with the university, but reiterates that senior leadership are “headed in the wrong direction” and “are missing an opportunity to lead the way” on tackling classism and elitism in higher education.
The 93% Club’s Annual General Meeting is on Thursday 27 March. Those interested in joining the committee, getting involved, or finding out more can find their Instagram @93clubedinburgh.
Image via the 93% Club Edinburgh.