Re: “PC tuition policy should treat all students equally,” Feb. 27, 2013.
The Charlatan’s editorial staff grossly mischaracterizes the Ontario Progressive Conservative (PC) position on post-secondary education.
The “Higher Learning for Better Jobs” white paper is about revitalizing the whole of our post-secondary institutions, yet the Charlatan has demonstrated the fundamental misunderstanding people have when it comes to post-secondary. Instead of reading and commenting on the whole of the white paper, the Charlatan has nit-picked out one section which they disagree with.
Even at that, they have grossly mischaracterized the Ontario PC’s policy.
The plan, as iterated in the white paper, is about ensuring that we unlock the potential in every student, as a means to create a more robust, more productive workforce that will meet the needs of tomorrow.
The party is concerned that our rigid, steadfast focus on the supremacy of universities is doing not only a disservice to programs and degrees offered in the many colleges that dot the province, and the many trades programs that exist. Universities have their purpose, but their training programs are not for everyone.
The same can be said for colleges and trades; they’re not for everyone either.
Universities, colleges, and trades programs (amongst many other post-secondary options) are designed and instituted not for the benefit of everyone, but for the benefit of those who are interested and stimulated by the programs which they offer. That’s not to say that the programs shouldn’t be open to everyone, far from it.
Our goal is to ensure that once students enter a program, they are successful in the end.
We need to be encouraging students to weigh all options before starting their post-secondary career.
— Justin Campbell,
president, Love of Liberty Society
