TORONTO, August 19, 2024 – OCUFA welcomes The Honourable Nolan Quinn to his appointment by Premier Doug Ford as Ontario’s Minister of Colleges and Universities.
Minister Quinn inherits an extremely important and challenging portfolio, and his term begins as hundreds of thousands of students, faculty, academic librarians and staff return to school across the province.
“OCUFA, along with students and communities across Ontario, has repeatedly informed predecessor Minister Jill Dunlop on the issues facing the university sector. These issues are more pressing than ever and cannot be resolved without the government’s support,” says Nigmendra Narain, President of OCUFA. “OCUFA looks forward to opportunities to engage Minister Quinn to right the ship and ensure that Ontarians have an opportunity to thrive.”
According to the Ontario government’s Blue-Ribbon panel, the university-age demographic will continue to grow, with 119,000 additional spaces needed for Canadian students by 2047. The next generations – the future of Ontario – deserve to have all post-secondary options available to them, including university, college and trades. Sadly, lack of public funding has made university out of reach for many, and education is no longer “for the people.”
“Universities are integral to society. They are huge economic drivers, attracting investment and spurring employment,” says Jenny Ahn, Executive Director of OCUFA. “University grads are the urban planners and architects who work alongside trades to make developments happen; they are the engineers who make EV plants possible; they are the lawyers who draw up business contracts. Ontario communities can’t thrive if they lack the university-educated talent that employers seek.”
Chronic underfunding of universities impacts entire communities. For example, the funding crisis and the housing crisis are interconnected, as students often compete for the same affordable housing as the most vulnerable populations. Reduced support for universities has also forced universities to rely heavily on international student tuition, putting additional pressures on crumbling infrastructure and urgent housing needs.
“OCUFA urges the government to work with the university sector and experts to prepare Ontarians for jobs, increase affordable housing, and strengthen the economy; these goals can only be accomplished by working together.” says Narain.
As challenging as this portfolio is, OCUFA has ideas and solutions for overcoming the current problems Minister Quinn has inherited, and paths for Ontario’s future successes. OCUFA looks forward to dialogue and meetings with Minister Quinn to ensure that Ontarians have access to Ontario’s world-class public universities.