(Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By Dylana Kneeshaw

POST SECONDARY EDUCATION

Former youth in care utilizing post-secondary education opportunity

Oct 27, 2019 | 1:32 AM

MISSION, BC — Since the province introduced its tuition waiver program for former youth in care to access higher education, over 1,000 students have used the program.

If applicants meet the eligibility requirements, their tuition and mandatory fees charged by the institution could be waived so they don’t have to pay them.

In a release yesterday (Oct. 26), Advanced Education Minister Melanie Mark says the program is a game-changing investment.

“This program is providing young people who haven’t had the right supports to now have a fighting chance at success. The fact that 1,119 students are benefiting from this opportunity speaks volumes about the resilience and determination of these young people. I am so proud to be part of a government that recognizes young people are our greatest asset, and lifting them up is the best legacy we can leave behind.”

Mark recently celebrated the milestone at a Federation of BC Youth in Care Networks event near Mission, alongside supporters and advocates of the program.

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The 1,119 students who have accessed the waiver have gone to 25 different public post-secondary institutions, Native Education College, and 10 union training providers. An improvement from 2017, when only 206 students utilized the waiver.

In the Interior, and Nicola Valley, 13 students have accessed the waiver at the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology in Merritt, while 101 have utilized the waiver from Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops.

“We’re changing the way we support youth as they transition out of government care and into adulthood,” said Katrine Conroy, Minister of Children and Family Development. “We have expanded and enhanced the Agreements with Young Adults program, which complements the tuition waiver program, by providing an extra $250 per month for the full 12 months of the year, and have also extended eligibility by one year.”

The students who were formerly youth in care have enrolled in a variety of programs at school – including teaching, social work, nursing, trades, flight training, graphic design, and business administration.