College, university students walk out to protest funding changes

College and university students across Ontario walked out of their classrooms Wednesday afternoon to protest the government’s changes to post-secondary funding.

The protests were organized by the Canadian Federation of Students’ Ontario chapters and happened around noon at school’s throughout the province.

The recent changes to funding include the elimination of free tuition for low-income students in January and made several once-mandatory student fees, such as those that fund campus organizations and clubs, optional.

The previous Liberal government had increased the number of grants and made it possible for low-income students to qualify for grants large enough to cover the full cost of tuition. Under the Progressive Conservative’s plan, a portion of the funding they receive will be a loan.

Hundreds of students filled the streets around Ryerson University in Toronto to protest the changes.

#studentwalkout #wethestudents #nomoredougford pic.twitter.com/oyHloEGPgm

— 🌙✨☁️ (@cardosooraquell) March 20, 2019