NDP Leader Marit Stiles lashed out Monday at the province’s “terrible” decision to slash Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) grants.
The changes include shifting to a loan-heavy model that caps the grants at 25 per cent — down from the current 85 per cent.
Flanked by advocates and angry students at Queen’s Park, Stiles said the changes to OSAP couldn’t come at a worse time for Ontario youth and their families.
“Terrible, terrible decision for Ontario,” she said.
Stiles also took aim at Ford’s recent comments that seemed to blame some students for choosing courses that don’t result in the jobs needed to pay the loans back.
“You’re picking basket-weaving courses and there’s not too many baskets being sold out there. Go into healthcare, go into trades,” Ford said last week. “Those are where the jobs are.”
“This makes my blood boil,” Stiles responded on Monday.
“We have the highest rates of youth unemployment in Canada and the premier wants to talk about in-demand degrees? How are students going to afford that?”
“Let’s be real,” she continued. “I meet every day with people who work in health care, education, who work in the minerals sector that he talks about, who work in skilled trades … and let me tell you, the problem they are facing is that there are not enough jobs…”
“I would question the premier’s qualifications for defining what is an in-demand job, what is a worthwhile degree, I think he’s very out of touch.”
During an earlier news conference Monday, Ford doubled down on his stance.
“Get an education that you can get a job … focus on that and you’ll be able to pay back any loans,” he said.
He also said he wasn’t being sarcastic about his earlier basket-weaving comment, noting that a basket weaving course is currently being taught at Carleton University in Ottawa.
“You want to pick any course, go for it, but don’t come out three or four years (later) and say, ‘Well, I don’t have a job.’ Well it’s very simple — you didn’t focus on key economic growth areas.”
“You are taking tax dollars and you have to be held accountable when you take tax dollars. It’s not a freebie anymore, money doesn’t grow on trees.”
Ford touts funding boost
Premier Ford said the focus should be on the province’s recently-announced funding boost to help colleges and universities.
“I’ve heard from a lot of students messaging me and I appreciate their messages … this comes down to — we’ve invested a record amount — to the tune of $7 billion each and every single year moving forward.”
Some of that money will help open 70,000 more seats for in-demand programs, the province said.
Under the changes, colleges and universities will also be able to raise tuition fees by up to two per cent per year for the next three years, ending a freeze.
After the changes were announced, Interim Liberal Leader John Fraser said the government was responsible for the problems they are now trying to fix.
“They starved colleges,” he said. “They allowed colleges to rely on foreign students because they didn’t have to take the money out of the treasury.”
‘Punishment for being poor’
Several students and advocates spoke alongside Stiles on Monday.
Christian Turner, a third year psychology student at York University, said the changes were punitive to those who aren’t wealthy.
“This decision from the premier is incredibly ridiculous and serves nobody except those at the top. For students, this is a travesty saddling them with even more debt … this does nothing to invest in the future of young Ontarians.
“This is nothing more than a punishment for being poor in a province where wealth inequality is already at an all-time high.”
Adaeze Mbalaja, a York University student and the Campaigns and Communications Coordinator for the Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario, said the announcement shows that the government is willing to find money for education, “but only at the expense of the students.”
“The end of the tuition freeze … is unfair and only further burdens poor students, especially international students that have been treated as an unlimited ATM to fund the system in absence of public funding.”
Nicholas Silver, Vice-President of Academics for the University of Toronto Graduate Students’ Union (UTGSU), said the “OSAP changes are not just bad for students, they are bad for Ontario’s future.”
“We are asking our students to take on more debt with fewer opportunities to find stable employment to repay that debt after they graduate.”
“If we make education less accessible, we only weaken our future workforce. Our students deserve better.”
With files from The Canadian Press
NDP Leader Marit Stiles lashed out Monday at the province’s “terrible” decision to slash Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) grants. The changes include shifting to a loan-heavy model that caps the grants at 25 per cent — down from the current 85 per cent. Flanked by advocates and angry students at Queen’s Park, Stiles said Provincial
NDP Leader Marit Stiles lashed out Monday at the province’s “terrible” decision to slash Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) grants.
The changes include shifting to a loan-heavy model that caps the grants at 25 per cent — down from the current 85 per cent.
Flanked by advocates and angry students at Queen’s Park, Stiles said the changes to OSAP couldn’t come at a worse time for Ontario youth and their families.
“Terrible, terrible decision for Ontario,” she said.
Stiles also took aim at Ford’s recent comments that seemed to blame some students for choosing courses that don’t result in the jobs needed to pay the loans back.
“You’re picking basket-weaving courses and there’s not too many baskets being sold out there. Go into healthcare, go into trades,” Ford said last week. “Those are where the jobs are.”
“This makes my blood boil,” Stiles responded on Monday.
“We have the highest rates of youth unemployment in Canada and the premier wants to talk about in-demand degrees? How are students going to afford that?”
“Let’s be real,” she continued. “I meet every day with people who work in health care, education, who work in the minerals sector that he talks about, who work in skilled trades … and let me tell you, the problem they are facing is that there are not enough jobs…”
“I would question the premier’s qualifications for defining what is an in-demand job, what is a worthwhile degree, I think he’s very out of touch.”
During an earlier news conference Monday, Ford doubled down on his stance.
“Get an education that you can get a job … focus on that and you’ll be able to pay back any loans,” he said.
He also said he wasn’t being sarcastic about his earlier basket-weaving comment, noting that a basket weaving course is currently being taught at Carleton University in Ottawa.
“You want to pick any course, go for it, but don’t come out three or four years (later) and say, ‘Well, I don’t have a job.’ Well it’s very simple — you didn’t focus on key economic growth areas.”
“You are taking tax dollars and you have to be held accountable when you take tax dollars. It’s not a freebie anymore, money doesn’t grow on trees.”
Ford touts funding boost
Premier Ford said the focus should be on the province’s recently-announced funding boost to help colleges and universities.
“I’ve heard from a lot of students messaging me and I appreciate their messages … this comes down to — we’ve invested a record amount — to the tune of $7 billion each and every single year moving forward.”
Some of that money will help open 70,000 more seats for in-demand programs, the province said.
Under the changes, colleges and universities will also be able to raise tuition fees by up to two per cent per year for the next three years, ending a freeze.
After the changes were announced, Interim Liberal Leader John Fraser said the government was responsible for the problems they are now trying to fix.
“They starved colleges,” he said. “They allowed colleges to rely on foreign students because they didn’t have to take the money out of the treasury.”
‘Punishment for being poor’
Several students and advocates spoke alongside Stiles on Monday.
Christian Turner, a third year psychology student at York University, said the changes were punitive to those who aren’t wealthy.
“This decision from the premier is incredibly ridiculous and serves nobody except those at the top. For students, this is a travesty saddling them with even more debt … this does nothing to invest in the future of young Ontarians.
“This is nothing more than a punishment for being poor in a province where wealth inequality is already at an all-time high.”
Adaeze Mbalaja, a York University student and the Campaigns and Communications Coordinator for the Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario, said the announcement shows that the government is willing to find money for education, “but only at the expense of the students.”
“The end of the tuition freeze … is unfair and only further burdens poor students, especially international students that have been treated as an unlimited ATM to fund the system in absence of public funding.”
Nicholas Silver, Vice-President of Academics for the University of Toronto Graduate Students’ Union (UTGSU), said the “OSAP changes are not just bad for students, they are bad for Ontario’s future.”
“We are asking our students to take on more debt with fewer opportunities to find stable employment to repay that debt after they graduate.”
“If we make education less accessible, we only weaken our future workforce. Our students deserve better.”
With files from The Canadian Press