October 10, 2024
The Consortium of English-language CEGEPs, colleges, and universities of Quebec welcomes the latest report on the status of Canada’s official-minority-language communities from Commissioner of Official Languages Raymond Théberge.
We thank the Commissioner for shining a spotlight on key challenges facing the minority language post-secondary education sector in Quebec.
Law 14, adopted in May 2022, represents the most significant changes imposed on English colleges and CEGEPs in the last 20 years. These changes will negatively impact rates of student success and graduation. The Law also creates an additional barrier for Indigenous students to access and achieve success in post-secondary education in Quebec.
Beginning in Fall 2024, a new university tuition reform with French language requirements was implemented that disproportionately affects Quebec’s three English universities due to their higher numbers of out-of-province and international students compared to Quebec’s French-language universities.
Collectively, these reforms have significant implications for the financial stability and vitality of English-language post-secondary institutions and Quebec’s official minority language English education continuum more broadly.
English CEGEPs, colleges and universities, like their French counterparts, are long standing Quebec institutions. They play a key role in driving Quebec’s economy, society, and international standing. They are essential to the vitality and prosperity of their local communities.
Quebec’s English post-secondary institutions are proud partners in the promotion, enhancement and advancement of the French language and culture both in Quebec and Canada more broadly.
The Consortium shares the Commissioner’s position that English-language post-secondary institutions in Quebec are part of the solution, not part of the problem.
To access the OCOL report: A shared future: A closer look at our official language minority communities.
About the Consortium of English-language CEGEPs, Colleges and Universities of Quebec
The Consortium of English-language CEGEPs, Colleges, and Universities of Quebec is an alliance of nine post-secondary institutions in Quebec: Bishop’s University, Champlain Regional College, Concordia University, Dawson College, Heritage College, John Abbott College, Marianopolis College, McGill University, and Vanier College.
Established in 2019, the Consortium is mandated to strengthen institutional capacity related to the retention, employment, and success of English-speaking graduates from post-secondary institutions in Quebec.
The Consortium collaborates with our member institutions, community stakeholders and other strategic partners to drive action and activities in the service of our mandate.
To learn more, please visit our website: www.consortiumquebec.ca
Contact:
Celine Cooper
Managing Director, Consortium of English-language CEGEPs, Colleges and Universities of Quebec
Email: ccooper@ubishops.ca
