Chapter 2
A Human Story
2.5.6 Fellowships for studying in French
The Office of the French Language Services Commissioner started receiving a number of complaints and requests for assistance regarding the elimination of the Fellowships for Studying in French program, just as it was preparing to publish its report No access, no future.31
The Fellowships for Studying in French program was introduced by the Ontario government in 1975-1976. The $1,500 non-renewable fellowships were awarded to some 800 students each academic year through a competitive process based primarily on academic performance. The Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities abolished the program following the discontinuation of several Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) funding plans in order to pay for the Ministry’s 30% Off Ontario Tuition program, which provides assistance to students from low-income families who choose to pursue a postsecondary education in Ontario, regardless of their language of study.
On June 20, 2012, because of the concerns expressed by citizens, the Commissioner notified the Ministry that he would conduct a formal investigation into the elimination of the fellowship program. On July 10, 2012, the Regroupement étudiant franco-ontarien (RÉFO), which represents the 22,000 Franco-Ontarian postsecondary students,32 launched an online petition to reinstate the Fellowships for Studying in French program. On October 3, 2012, the petition, which now had nearly 6,000 signatures,33 was officially submitted to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by a Member of the Provincial Parliament.
The Fellowships for Studying in French program was one more tool to assist Francophones and Francophiles in pursuing French-language postsecondary studies in Ontario. Before its elimination, the program sent a clear signal that pursuing a postsecondary education in French was a choice encouraged by the Ontario government and, by extension, that such an education had real value in Ontarian society. It was also the government’s last and only genuine incentive to pursue a postsecondary education in French in Ontario. The Commissioner will release the findings of his investigation into the elimination of the Fellowships for Studying in French program in 2013.
31Office of the French Language Services Commissioner, supra note 8.
32For more information, see http://www.refo.ca/organisation.php (page consulted in May 2013).
33When the online petition closed, it had a total of 5,929 signatures. Available online: https://www.change.org/fr/pétitions/pétition-pour-réinstaurer-la-bourse-pour-étudier-en-français-en-ontario-2 (page consulted in May 2013).
Ces bourses permettent à des étudiants d’avoir un meilleur métier et de faire avancer la France après, c’est vraiment pas mal comme système, il faut continuer à garder ce système.
Dear Commissioner,
So now francophone students have 30% off tuition and an additional perk of $1,500 of the Fellowship. Do you plan a similar financial perk for anglophone students? Please share my concern with the the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities.
Merci.
Hello,
Thank you very much for your comment. However, this is not exactly right. Francophones used to have access to the Fellowships for Studying in French program introduced in 1975-1976 as an incentive to pursue their postsecondary education in French in Ontario. Each year, $1,500 non-renewable fellowships were available to some 800 postsecondary students with a sufficiently high level of academic performance.
The Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities cancelled these fellowships following the discontinuation of several Ontario Student Assistance Program (OASP) funding plans in order to pay for the Ministry’s 30% Off Ontario Tuition program, which provides assistance to students from low-income families who choose to pursue a post-secondary education in Ontario, regardless of their language of study.
In May 2013, the government extended eligibility for the Ontario Distance Grant program (for which Anglophone students were already eligible) to include Francophones and Francophiles who have to travel at least 80 kilometres to attend a French-language full-time program, even if there is a college or university closer to their permanent home address.
The key here is to understand that if one wants to study in a French-language program, one needs to relocate and this adds on to the lack of incentive to study in French and thus, contributes to the assimilation process and the loss for Ontario of its capacity to compete in today’s smaller and smaller world.
Please do not hesitate to read my Investigation Report on the Cancellation of the Fellowships for Studying in French, published in October 2013, at http://www.csf.gouv.on.ca/en/articles/4602 for more information.
Sincerely,
François Boileau, Ontario French Language Services Commissioner
Bonjour, Avez-vous des nouvelles concernant ce système de bourse et si le commissaire a rendu ses conclusions qui étaient prévues pour fin 2013 ?
Bonjour,
J’ai effectivement publié mon rapport d’enquête intitulé « Abolition de la Bourse pour étudier en français : L’importance de bien faire ses devoirs » le 9 octobre 2013. Il est possible de le consulter en ligne au http://www.csf.gouv.on.ca/fr/articles/4602, ou encore de lire le communiqué émis le jour de la publication du rapport au http://www.csf.gouv.on.ca/fr/articles/4605.
Merci,
François Boileau
Commissaire aux services en français de l’Ontario