Ontario’s Colleges Are Collapsing—And It Was Totally Avoidable

Ontario’s College Crisis: What Happens When We Treat Education Like a Business

The election may be over, but some of the most pressing issues facing Ontarians never made it into the conversation. One of the biggest? The crisis in Ontario’s colleges.

Ontario’s colleges were meant to be stepping stones to opportunity—places where students gain the skills to build their futures and where faculty and staff shape the next generation. Instead, years of government neglect and the commodification of education have turned them into cash cows, forced to chase international tuition dollars while local students are left behind.

This crisis didn’t happen overnight. It started under the previous Liberal government, which cut per-student funding while allowing colleges to become increasingly reliant on tuition revenue—especially from international students. Instead of fixing the problem, Doug Ford’s government doubled down, further starving colleges of public funding and pushing an unsustainable growth model that left students, faculty, and staff vulnerable.

Now, the house of cards is collapsing. Nearly all of Ontario’s 24 public colleges have announced mass layoffs, program cuts, and campus closures. This is what happens when we treat education like a business instead of a public good.

An Unsustainable Growth Model

Ontario colleges have been forced into survival mode, prioritizing revenue over education quality and student success. Instead of using resources wisely to protect the rights and needs of future generations—a core Green Party value—the government has encouraged a reckless expansion of international enrolment while refusing to invest in sustainable, long-term solutions.

• Since 2010, tuition revenue has tripled, while provincial funding has dropped by 28%.

• Since Ford took office in 2018, international enrolment has tripled, while domestic enrolment has fallen by 20%.

• Ontario ranks last in Canada for per-student funding, falling $8,411 short of the national average.

• Colleges accumulated a record $1 billion surplus in 2023-24, yet much of it is being used for capital projects instead of supporting students and staff.

This system was built on unstable ground, and now it’s crumbling. Ontario’s colleges should be focused on empowering students, supporting faculty, and strengthening communities—not treating education as a profit-driven industry.

The Green Vision: People Over Profits

Ontario’s Greens believe in putting people over profits. That means:

• Funding colleges properly so they serve local students first—not forcing them to chase international tuition to survive.

• Protecting jobs and programs because Ontario’s future depends on skilled educators and a well-trained workforce.

• Ensuring tuition dollars go back into the classroom—not into vanity projects and administrative bloat.

It would take $1.4 billion in emergency funding to stop the immediate cuts and another $1.34 billion to bring per-student funding in line with the rest of the country. That’s significantly less than the $100 billion Ford could be spending on a highway tunnel.

The Fight Isn’t Over

Democracy doesn’t end at the ballot box. The election is over, but this fight is just beginning. We need to keep the pressure on our MPPs to fund our colleges fairly, protect jobs, and put education back where it belongs—at the heart of Ontario’s future.

What can you do?

• Contact your MPP and demand immediate action to save college programs and jobs.

• Share this post to raise awareness about what’s happening.

• Support student and faculty advocacy groups that are fighting for fair funding.

Ontario deserves better. Let’s demand it.