Bryan Laprise
François Legault's CAQ government was re-elected on October 3rd, 2022 with almost 41% of votes. Because of the failed promise of electoral reform during their first term, they got an astonishing 90 seats in the National Assembly (72% of seats), making them a majority government.
With the pandemic behind us, the CAQ decided to reform the Charter of the French Language. In the following years, major changes are being forced upon our English higher education institutions in the province, colleges and universities alike.
With Law 14 and an announcement made by the provincial government on October 13th, 2023, it makes it harder to access English educational institutions and puts a stress on many students.
From 3 to 5 French Classes in CEGEPs
Starting in the Fall 2024 semester, students enrolled in an English CEGEP will now have to take a total of 5 French courses. These may be a French-as-a-second-language course, or a program-specific course. This is putting an administrative strain on many colleges. Making this transition has been a time consuming and logistically difficult task.
For smaller CEGEPs, such as Champlain Lennoxville, challenging decisions had to be made on how to ensure each student would receive these obligatory courses. Because of the limited number of groups, the possibility of having students choose which courses they would take in French was impossible.
Many students are frustrated with this new measure. Not only is it discouraging students from attending CEGEP, it is pushing some students to look at educational avenues elsewhere, altogether. With the University of Ottawa and the University of New Brunswick accepting Secondary V graduates to enroll, Québec will lose some French-speaking Angloquebecers.
It is expected that by the 2024-25 school year, there will be many job losses as some teachers cannot give their classes in French. Amidst a labour shortage, it seems wasteful to let go of these qualified teachers. Since this is a province-wide reform, it may be impossible for them to find an equivalent position.
More Difficulties for Non English-Eligibility Holders
Since the enactment of Bill 101, an individual needed to have a family history of people going to English-language schools in order to have access to those institutions. This used to be the case for only elementary and secondary schools, but now, there will be more regulations for those wanting to complete their college education in English.
In order to graduate, those students will have to complete the Épreuves uniformes en langue d'enseignement et littérature, like students in French CEGEPs. This is another difficulty the administrative and teaching teams of English CEGEPs are facing. They must now prepare these students, who are weaker in French, and ensure they pass the exam.
With Law 14, the colleges must prioritize students with English eligibility.
Minimizing Numbers in English CEGEPs
No more than 17.5% of the number of students in the provincial CEGEP network can attend English schools.
This will minimize the number of francophones and allophones that can attend these institutions.
"In my opinion," says Christian Corno, the director general of Marianopolis College, "a higher education student should be able to choose the institution that meets their needs."
The colleges are facing a financial penalty of $3,500 per extra student this year, and it will bump up to $7,000 next year.
University Tuition Price Hikes Up for Out-of-Province Students
In a statement made by the CAQ on October 13th, it was announced the cost of tuition for English universities will significantly increase as of Fall 2024.
This decision was made by the majority government, despite protests from all the universities and the Liberal Party of Québec. As a way to stop "subsidizing" students not natal to the province, the minimum cost of tuition for these students will go up from $8,892 to $17,000. All the new money will be given straight to the government, used to fund French universities instead.
As for international students, the new minimum cost will be $20,000.
Once again, the CAQ is using this move with the justification of protecting the "endangered French language."
Pascale Déry, the minister of higher education said, "For our government, slowing the decline of the French language is a priority, and we commend the efforts made by anglophone institutions to comply with the new provisions of the Charter of the French Language."
These decisions have been fuel for anger and disappointment from the universities, potential students and the Anglophone community.
On October 23, Galt faculty wore the colours of their university in solidarity with English Universities amidst the challenges they will face with the tuition hikes. Other schools from the ETSB did the same.
AGRHS staff showing solidarity to their universities
Many students that were looking at attending university in Québec, from its program, campuses, and even learning the language are taken aback and are seriously considering staying in their home province altogether to avoid those extra costs. Last year, 22% of McGill's student population came from out-of-province so these students deciding to pursue their education elsewhere is awful for these institutions.
Sébastien Lebel-Grenier, Bishop's rector and vice-chancellor stated, "No one here thinks we are a threat to French. We expect support from the government, not penalization."
Concordia president deems this decision "unacceptable and disrespectful."
Disapproval is also coming from members of the National Assembly. Marc Tanguay, the LPQ's interim leader commented, "This is completely unacceptable. We should not condemn those who are willing to study in Quebec."
Being in a bilingual country, this begs the question, what does this look like for Québec on the national scene?
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