Jordan Saniuk sits at a desk in his loft. The suite, located in the heart of Old Montreal is tastefully decorated: furnished with leather chairs and dark hardwood floor.
Bright-eyed and 22, it surprised most that Saniuk is the founder of a new school of education called Clssy. The classes, in keeping with this level of surprise, all operate out of his loft.
Clssy, pronounced “classy,” because “You don’t need an A in Clssy,” is an alternative education system that caters to people of all backgrounds who want to take classes.
While there are many options for education, Saniuk said none of them were for him. He studied fine arts in Los Angeles and was pursuing a degree in computer science at Concordia up until last year. He put his studies on hold because he said his degree wasn’t allowing him to take electives that really interested him.
Saniuk tried to take classes outside of university but said he couldn’t find any so he made his own. Now, Clssy has a selection of more than 15 classes and has reached out to about 30 students.
The defining characteristic of Clssy is its accessibility, according to Saniuk. This idea extends from the cost of classes which range from free to $60, to the structure of classes. The class size will never surpass 20 people, Saniuk said. This level of intimacy is essential to Clssy, he said describing how it’s less of a teacher-student relationship and more like mentoring.
The selection of teachers is another unique aspect.
“I believe if people are passionate about what they do then they will be great teachers,” Saniuk said.
Saniuk teaches a number of introductory classes despite not having completed a degree. Many of the teachers are similar to him in that way.
Andre Di Fruscia is one of these examples. Saniuk said he was introduced to him through a friend and since then, Di Fruscia has been teaching all of the photography classes.
Di Frusicia slowly transitioned the loft into a classroom as students trickled in. One of these students, Ali Khosravi, said he was looking to take a photography class and Clssy’s was the perfect fit.
“It was cozy and not what I had imagined,” Khosravi said. “I’d never taken any classes in Canada before.”
Khosravi doesn’t fall into the typical category of a student but Clssy isn’t exactly a typical school. Saniuk said he wants to stress that he didn’t create Clssy as an affront to post-secondary institutions. On the contrary, he said Clssy doesn’t replace universities and colleges but rather presents alternatives to people.
Clssy isn’t the only homegrown education startup in Montreal. The Alternative University Project, founded by McGill and Concordia students, offers free courses to students although they cover more academic subjects in comparison to Clssy’s trades-based classes.
The networks for Clssy and the Alternative University Project are developing in Montreal but Saniuk said he hopes to bring accessible education across Canada.
Saniuk works as a graphic designer but said he hopes to be able to focus all his energy on Clssy and expand its reach. He has his sights set on Toronto, Vancouver and Ottawa where he said he hopes to launch Clssy classrooms in the fall.
