As many in the University of Toronto law class of 2014 prepare to graduate with staggering debt loads, some students say the choice of convocation speaker is adding insult to injury.

The speaker will be Ron Daniels, the former dean to blame for massive tuition hikes.

“The man largely responsible for our high tuition is coming back to pick up a free degree. Oh, the irony,” wrote student Daanish Samadmoten in an opinion piece for the law school’s independent newspaper Ultra Vires.

“I find it insulting that the man who spearheaded an initiative that has significantly contributed to the unnecessary stress in my life and the lives of many of my classmates (now and for years to come) is being honoured and rewarded at my convocation. It’s an insensitive choice at best.”

Daniels, now president of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, was dean of the U of T law school from 1995 to 2005. In that time he launched an ambitious and controversial plan to put U of T in competition with big-name American law schools.

It meant tripling yearly tuition fees to $12,000 by 2002, after professional schools were deregulated by the province, and approving a plan to hike fees to $22,000 by 2007. Tuition is now more than $30,000 a year, the highest among Canadian law schools.

The tuition increases are needed to improve the program and boost faculty salaries so the university can keep and attract the best people, Daniels argued in a 2002 op-ed in the Toronto Star.

But at what price, questions Samadmoten.

“I don’t think his vision — to make U of T the Harvard or Yale of Canada — has worked so far,” he said in an interview. “And just saying ‘when we get there it will work’ is ignoring all the costs along the way of student debt and student pressures.”

The skyrocketing fees, which increase by the maximum allowable amount every year, and resulting student debt loads that can reach $150,000 have been a particularly hot topic on campus for the past year, he says. Students say they feel pressured to pursue higher-paying Bay Street jobs over public interest jobs.

They are also concerned about the impact on student diversity and mental health, and argue that the current financial assistance doesn’t go far enough.

“It’s kind of insulting to our dialogue (with the administration) to put (Daniels) in at this time,” Samadmoten said.

Associate Dean Ben Alarie says the administration is aware of the student concerns and is careful to ensure the law school is accessible and that career choices can remain flexible. He says the socio-economic mix of the student population remains the same as before 1995, and that there has been no change in number of students choosing public interest careers.

The university offers need-based financial assistance and a post-graduation debt relief program for those who will earn less than $75,000, Alarie said. Both programs were introduced by Daniels.

“So far, students are selecting us over cheaper law schools because they see the value (in a U of T law degree), too,” Alarie adds. “It’s a success story.”

It’s the university’s governing council that decides, from a list of nominations, who will be awarded an honorary degree, but Alarie said Daniels is a worthy choice.

“I realize that not everyone will agree with the choices that he made as dean, but I think it’s entirely reasonable to honour him with an honorary doctorate for the really positive contributions he’s made to the field of higher education.”

He made “some really transformational choices” at the law school, establishing the international human rights program, a high school outreach program, and Pro Bono Students Canada, added Alarie.

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For some displeased students, there is a silver lining in what Krista Nerland calls an “an insensitive and odd choice.”

They are in the process of drafting a letter to Daniels that will ask him to address their concerns in his speech on June 6.

“We think it does create a fantastic opportunity for former Dean Daniels to address these issues head-on in his talk to us,” says student Kamal Bakhazi. “Does he stand by his legacy?”