Students at the University of Guelph joined a provincewide walkout on Thursday to protest recent changes to the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP). The demonstration was part of a coordinated action organized across Ontario by the Canadian Federation of Students to push back against government changes to student financial aid, including reducing the proportion of funding provided as non-repayable grants while allowing post-secondary institutions to increase tuition rates. Emilie Dudgeon, president of the university’s Central Student Association, said the shifts are worsening an already difficult situation for post-secondary students. “A lot of students [are] working extra jobs, working late at night, showing up exhausted to morning classes, can’t afford rent because of these things,” Dudgeon said. “It has very real impacts.” Dudgeon added that the impacts extend beyond current post-secondary students to high schoolers planning their futures. “Personally, I’ve heard from high schoolers who now can’t afford to go to university because of these OSAP cuts,” Dudgeon said. “They are wondering what they can do with their future. It is very unsettling.” In a statement, a spokesperson for Nolan Quinn, Ontario’s Minister of Colleges and Universities, defended the provincial government’s decision, saying: “As we have stated, the previous OSAP framework was no longer sustainable. Alongside numerous student financial aid programs like OLSG, our enhanced Student Access Guarantee will ensure qualified, low-income Ontario students continue to be supported. With these changes, our government is ensuring Ontario students have access to an affordable world-class education that will launch them into good paying jobs and careers for many years to come.” Demonstrators on campus strongly rejected that rationale, chanting demands for free education as they gathered for speeches before marching across campus. Sophie, a third-year student at the university who asked to be identified only by her first name, said the news was disappointing for the student body. “I’m luckily in a fortunate position where this OSAP isn’t going to affect me where I can’t stay in school, but I know so many people where OSAP is a make-or-break thing for them,” she said. “It’s really, really disheartening.” Even students who are not dependent on the program joined the walkout in solidarity with their peers. Rebecca O’Rourke, a representative with Guelph Students Against Austerity, said OSAP cuts are creating widespread stress across the entire campus community. “It’s not about what we as individuals feel, it’s the campus community,” O’Rourke said. O’Rourke added that organizers hope Thursday’s walkout is only the beginning of a larger movement. “This is the part where we raise awareness,” she said. “Hopefully going further, we’ll have more and more students coming out, more voices will be heard, and soon they won’t be able to ignore us.”
