The five-week long college strike was lengthy, difficult, and expensive. Many students are inquiring about financial assistance for incremental costs as result of the strike. Costs that students had to cover as result of the strike that they would otherwise not have, can submit those costs for reimbursement for up to $500. Vice-President of Student Services, Michele Beaudoim, helps break down information to students.
- Who can apply: all full-time students
- What: the withdrawal forms will clarify to students what the criteria is for requesting up to $500 from the Student Hardship Fund for incremental costs (i.e. travel costs, groceries, daycare).
Full tuition refunds are available for students who decide not to continue their program. - Where: online withdrawal forms will be available for download on the Fanshawe college website. Forms must be filled with any receipts or documentation to help the school understand where expenses are coming from.
- When: the forms will go live Monday, November 27th, 2017 and will be opened to students until the end of the academic school year. Forms can be submitted as late as April.
Other general questions:
How long until students can expect to see financial assistance?
“It depends on the volume of forms received. As of right now, the school is unsure how many students are going to be requesting assistance. Fanshawe is assembling a small committee of about 4-5 people to help review the forms and process them as quickly as possible. The committee will be comprised of international student representatives, members from the Registra Office and Financial Aid Office.”
Michele Beaudoim, Vice-President of Student Services
Is $500 enough?
“We’re unsure of what we are going to see. We think we’re going to see a range for sure. We’re going to see students who submit under the 500 and students who may have more than the 500 that they submit. What we’re doing is taking a look at what students have submitted up to the 500, and then in addition to that, if we have a case for a student [that is requesting more than the 500 cap,] we could top that off with other kinds of financial aid or funding.”
In addition to the Student Hardship Fund, Fanshawe also has their emergency fund, along with other types of funds such as financial aid or bursaries, that can also assist students if necessary.
What about a refund for lost time?
“In terms of fair reimbursement for students – we don’t know what is probably fair. We’re trying to do everything we can: [like, support students through the strike by having kept services running during the strike, and then extending hours after the strike, adjusting term dates, etc..] Our goal right now is getting students through their programs and to ensure that they get their credentials that they came here for by adjusting some of the timing and focusing on learning outcomes, and extending services to provide additional support. If we can do that, we are doing our best we can to make our commitment we’ve made to students around succeeding around their credential.”
VP Beaudoim says the college’s administration is hoping students are making informed decisions when deciding whether or not they wish to continue their programs. “I’ve been hearing from a lot of students that their fear is being able to handle work load to get through what they have to get through. It’s really important that they get a sense from their faculty as to what the expectations might be and how that will be adjusted giving that we’re going to be moving into January and later in April for the second term.”
Mason Lauzon is a student in Child and Youth Care Program who has made the decision to dropout of his program. Click here to listen to his story:
