Aboriginal Education
The Post-Secondary Student Support Program
The federal government provides funding for Status First Nations and Inuit people (as defined by the Indian Act) through the Post-Secondary Student Support Program (PSSSP). Funding for the PSSSP is distributed by band councils under their own eligibility criteria. For example, some bands fund more students at a portion of the total cost of their education, whereas other band councils give a grant covering all of a student’s expenses.
Of the Aboriginal students enrolled in post-secondary education, about 25% of those enrolled in college and 15% of those enrolled in university receive funds through the PSSSP.
When accounting for inflation and population growth, the value of the federal government's contribution to the PSSSP and other support programs has not been increased meaningfully since the mid-1990s. Funding for INAC’s Post-Secondary Education Program, which includes the PSSSP, has been capped at 2% annual growth since 1996.
In 2005, the federal government announced plans to tax PSSSP funds as income, removing the funding from tax exempt status and violating the federal governments’ fiduciary responsibility to First Nations people. The Canadian Federation of Students, as well as many First Nations groups in Canada, successfully lobbied the federal government to halt the proposed taxation of the PSSSP.
The Federation has been lobbying the federal government to increase funding to the PSSSP to ensure that no eligible student is denied funding to pursue post-secondary education. In addition, the Federation is proposing that consultations begin immediately between the federal government and Aboriginal organisations with a view to developing a plan to include students not currently eligible to receive funding under the Indian and Northern Affairs Canada Post-Secondary Program (non-Status First Nations and Métis students).
National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation
The 2003 federal budget included a -million endowment to establish post-secondary scholarships for Aboriginal people. The scholarships will be administered by the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation, a private charity that provides funding to Aboriginal students for education and training. No details were provided on the number of scholarships that will be funded through the endowment, nor the dollar amount of individual scholarships.
While new money to assist Aboriginal peoples' participation in post-secondary education is welcome, this one-time endowment does not constitute the type of long-term investment that is required. When adjusted for inflation, annual funding through Indian and Northern Affairs Canada for Aboriginal post-secondary education actually declined by almost million between 1998 and 2002, after which funding was capped at a rate slower than population growth. At the same time, rising tuition fees mean that post-secondary education costs a student much more than it did a decade ago.
Tuition Fees
As with any non-repayable student financial assistance, skyrocketing tuition fees have dramatically depreciated the value of programs like the PSSSP. Moreover, the scarcity of education funding for non-Status Aboriginals means that financial barriers to post-secondary education remain insurmountable.
Canadian Federation of Students National Aboriginal Caucus
About the National Aboriginal Caucus
The National Aboriginal Caucus (NAC) of the Canadian Federation of Students is the voice for Aboriginal students in Canada. NAC is a separate Caucus within the Canadian Federation of Students uniting Aboriginal students across the country. With members at campuses from St. John’s to Victoria, the National Aboriginal Caucus puts the issues of Aboriginal students on the national agenda.
The Caucus holds three business meetings per year, has a distinct budget and elects a Chair and a representative on the Federation’s National Executive. Aboriginal students also join together with over one-half million students across Canada to lobby on issues of concern to all students such as student debt, tuition fees, and core funding for Canadian universities and colleges. The priorities of the Caucus are set by its membership and defined by the daily challenges facing Aboriginal students.
Goals
The National Aboriginal Caucus has the following objectives: advocating for the interests of all Aboriginal students at the national and international levels; providing a forum for discussion of issues of concern to Aboriginal students; and representing the interests of Aboriginal students’ within the Canadian Federation of Students.
Advocacy for Aboriginal Students
The Aboriginal Caucus of the Canadian Federation of Students plays a critical role in putting Aboriginal students’ issues on the provincial and federal landscape.
Through the Federation’s national research department, the Aboriginal Caucus monitors legislative developments as they pertain to Aboriginal students. The research and communications capacity of the Federation also insures that the voice of Aboriginal students is heard on such issues as funding, student financial assistance, and governance.
National Aboriginal Caucus representatives meet regularly with elected and non-elected officials from Indian and Northern Affairs, Human Resources and Social Development Canada, the Department of Finance, and other Members of Parliament and Senators. In addition, the National Aboriginal Caucus works with other national and provincial organisations representing Aboriginal peoples including the Assembly of First Nations.
Mission Statement
The National Aboriginal Caucus’ Mission Statement was developed by members at the May 2007 Caucus meeting in Ottawa, Ontario.
The National Aboriginal Caucus mission is to see the removal of all barriers that Aboriginal students face when pursuing post-secondary education. The Caucus will achieve this through lobbying federal, provincial and municipal governments, through the development of strong and concise campaigns, and through working together with similar organisations and coalition partners toward high-quality, accessible post-secondary education.
National Aboriginal Caucus Executive
British Columbia Representative: Jaden Keitlah
Chairperson: Mike White
Manitoba Representative: Tasha Spillett
National Executive Representative: Jerry Daniels
Ontario Representative: Gregory Boyle
Saskatchewan Representative: Cassandra Opikekow
Newfoundland & Labrador Representative: Melissa Penney
More information from Canadian Federation of Students
The Post-Secondary Student Support Program
The federal government provides funding for Status First Nations and Inuit people (as defined by the Indian Act) through the Post-Secondary Student Support Program (PSSSP). Funding for the PSSSP is distributed by band councils under their own eligibility criteria. For example, some bands fund more students at a portion of the total cost of their education, whereas other band councils give a grant covering all of a student’s expenses.
Of the Aboriginal students enrolled in post-secondary education, about 25% of those enrolled in college and 15% of those enrolled in university receive funds through the PSSSP.
When accounting for inflation and population growth, the value of the federal government's contribution to the PSSSP and other support programs has not been increased meaningfully since the mid-1990s. Funding for INAC’s Post-Secondary Education Program, which includes the PSSSP, has been capped at 2% annual growth since 1996.
In 2005, the federal government announced plans to tax PSSSP funds as income, removing the funding from tax exempt status and violating the federal governments’ fiduciary responsibility to First Nations people. The Canadian Federation of Students, as well as many First Nations groups in Canada, successfully lobbied the federal government to halt the proposed taxation of the PSSSP.
The Federation has been lobbying the federal government to increase funding to the PSSSP to ensure that no eligible student is denied funding to pursue post-secondary education. In addition, the Federation is proposing that consultations begin immediately between the federal government and Aboriginal organisations with a view to developing a plan to include students not currently eligible to receive funding under the Indian and Northern Affairs Canada Post-Secondary Program (non-Status First Nations and Métis students).
National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation
The 2003 federal budget included a -million endowment to establish post-secondary scholarships for Aboriginal people. The scholarships will be administered by the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation, a private charity that provides funding to Aboriginal students for education and training. No details were provided on the number of scholarships that will be funded through the endowment, nor the dollar amount of individual scholarships.
While new money to assist Aboriginal peoples' participation in post-secondary education is welcome, this one-time endowment does not constitute the type of long-term investment that is required. When adjusted for inflation, annual funding through Indian and Northern Affairs Canada for Aboriginal post-secondary education actually declined by almost million between 1998 and 2002, after which funding was capped at a rate slower than population growth. At the same time, rising tuition fees mean that post-secondary education costs a student much more than it did a decade ago.
Tuition Fees
As with any non-repayable student financial assistance, skyrocketing tuition fees have dramatically depreciated the value of programs like the PSSSP. Moreover, the scarcity of education funding for non-Status Aboriginals means that financial barriers to post-secondary education remain insurmountable.
First Nations Technical Institute
The Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario has been calling on the Government of Ontario and the Government of Canada to provide adequate funding for the First Nations Technical Institute (FNTI).
The FNTI provides crucial opportunities for many of Ontario's Aboriginal and First Nations people to access post-secondary education and training. Aboriginal and First Nations students deserve fair funding for their post-secondary institutions and should not have to raise funds from private donors or lose operating funding by being forced to partner with other post-secondary institutions.
The Federation urges the Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, the Ontario Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs and the Government of Canada to provide long-term funding for the FTNI that students and their teachers can count on.