Changes to the Ontario Student Assistance Program announced Thursday as part of the provincial budget will improve access to higher education, say government officials and groups representing universities, faculty and students.
Finance minister Charles Sousa pledged to combine the Ontario Tuition Grant, Ontario Student Opportunity Grant, Ontario Access Grants and other grants into the single Ontario Student Grant, which he said “will make average college or university tuition free for students with financial need from families with incomes of $50,000 or less, and will make tuition more affordable for middle-class families.”
The Council of Ontario Universities said the changes will mean easier access to aid, saying they will “improve access to higher education and make the real costs of tuition better understood by students and their families.”
The council’s president, David Lindsay, said the new system will encourage greater participation in post-secondary education.
“The tuition sticker price is not the real measure of the cost of university tuition,” he said. “Ontario has one of the most generous student aid programs in Canada, and when you consider the net costs of tuition—which is the actual price students pay once financial aid is factored in—most students will pay much less.”
Read the full COU statement, “Financial aid just got easier for students who need it, and Ontario’s universities are in full support.”
The umbrella group representing faculty and academic librarians also welcomed the announcement, saying it will make higher education more accessible to low-income students.
“The new Ontario Student Grant is an important step in helping students from low-income backgrounds access the many individual, social, and economic benefits of a university education,” said Judy Bates, president of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations.
She said it is encouraging to see the government invest in students, adding “universities need adequate public resources to provide quality education for every student who walks through the door.”
The confederation’s response, “Professors welcome investments in student access, caution that Ontario still needs to invest in universities” is available on its website.
In a news release, the Ontario branch of the Canadian Federation of Students applauded the announcement.
“For years, students have been sounding the alarm over rising tuition fees and student debt loads that block far too many Ontarians from accessing college and university education,” said chair Rajean Hoilett, “The new Ontario Student Grant is a reflection of our advocacy and an affirmation that government has taken student concerns and suggestions seriously.”
The Canadian Federation of Students–Ontario represents more than 350,000 college and university students across the province, including all three UWindsor student governments. Read the full release, “Students achieve historic victory in Ontario budget with introduction of new needs-based grant program.”