Students stressed about another majority Ford government

TORONTO, ON, Feb. 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- For Immediate Release 

With the conclusion of the election, Doug Ford and the Conservatives have won another majority government with 80 of seats at Queen's Park, with the NDP forming the official opposition. Across the province, students and workers are stressed and worried about what another Conservative majority government means for post-secondary education. Students and workers are familiar with this Conservative government and their track record of cutting public services without hesitation and ignoring calls for more public funding for colleges and universities. Students know that this government will not prioritize post-secondary education and students.

With the federal government's xenophobic policy changes to International students' study permits and chronic underfunding, programs are rapidly being cut and students are bearing the brunt of government's decisions and policy failures. This manufactured crisis is due to decades of underfunding of post-secondary education which was exacerbated by the changes introduced by the Ford government since his first election in 2018.

"It is troubling to know that students were not prioritized throughout this election. Given the announcement of multiple program closures at colleges and universities, students know that the quality of education and the availability of programs will be impacted” said Cyrielle Ngeleka, National Executive Representative. "Students will hold the government accountable and fight for free and public post-secondary education.”

With the announcement of program closures and institutional deficits, it's crucial that as Doug Ford and the Conservatives return to Queen's Park that they work with students and workers to develop a plan to fund post-secondary education and invest in the sector, otherwise risk the closure of multiple colleges and universities. 

"We are entering another period of precarity for post-secondary education and the future of Ontario's colleges and universities lie in the balance” said Adaeze Mbalaja, Ontario Chairperson, "In the same way that students and workers watched the Laurentian University financial crisis, students are witnessing their programs being cut in the wake of the major loss of public funding and loss of International students' tuition fees.The existing system of post-secondary education is unsustainable and the sector needs major changes.”

The Federation demands that the government immediately invest in post-secondary education and develop a strategy to fund education until it is free. Students know that the only way to have truly accessible education is to eliminate tuition fees once and for all.

The Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario is the oldest and largest student organization in Ontario, representing over 350,000 college and university students in every region of the province.

Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario 

Fédération canadienne des étudiantes et étudiants-Ontario

302 - 225, rue Richmond Street West / Ouest ᐧ● Toronto, Ontario ● M5V 1W2

Telephone /Téléphone: (416) 925-3825 ● www.cfsontario.ca

CONTACT: Adaeze Mbalaja

Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario

(416) 925-3825

[email protected]

Kayla Weiler

Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario

[email protected]