Dear Colleagues,

On Tuesday, March 24, 2026, U of T students are meeting at Sidney Smith Hall at 12:30 to walk over to the Ontario Legislature at Queens Park at 1:15 to protest the Provincial Government’s lack of support for post-secondary education the recent shift in the proportion of OSAP distribution. If you are free, join us!

ON government has shifted the OSAP grant allocations from 85% of a student’s funding to a maximum of 25% and loans going from 15% to 75%. This new directive will put a significant strain on students and their families in an already austere environment. Ontario provided $10,481 in total university funding per domestic full-time equivalent student (FTE) in 2023-24, a modest increase from the $10,246 it provided in 2022-23. However during this same period the Canadian average level of provincial funding increased from $16,790 to $17,424 per domestic FTE, a much larger increase than occurred in Ontario. This means that Ontario is in last place when it comes to university funding, it is falling further behind (see OCUFA report, “A MADE-IN-ONTARIO ECONOMIC SOLUTION: ENSURING UNIVERSITIES CONTINUE TO DRIVE ONTARIO’S PROSPERITY OCUFA’s 2026” the “ Pre-Budget Submission”,  p. 13.)

Sincerely,

Harriet Sonne de Torrens
Interim Vice-President, University and External Affairs