Developing the potential of our citizens

“It’s so crucial to our future that kids in high school feel that university is affordable, that kids in high school feel the community college courses are relevant and appropriate, that businesses believe that we have the flexibility and agility and creativity to target programs.”

Premier Gary Doer

Affordability

• We’ve introduced a 60% tuition fee rebate for graduates of any eligible college, university or apprenticeship program who choose to live and pay taxes in Manitoba.



• We cut tuition fees for Manitoba undergraduates by 10% in 2000, and kept them frozen at that level ever since.


All the while the province provided more money to colleges and universities to compensate them for foregone fee increases.


• We’ve increased scholarships and bursaries for students by $166 million since 1999.



• We’ve reduced the interest charged on student loans by 1%.

Our government’s financial incentives for students have been working. Enrollments are up by about 30% since 1999. Manitoba now has the lowest student debt levels outside Quebec.

“Manitoba’s tax credit for tuition is a terrific idea, and it is great to see the province being proactive in stemming the outflow of young people.”

Todd Hirsch, Chief Economist, Canada West Foundation

Moving forward on affordability

• We are extending the tuition reduction for one more year through the 2008-09 academic year, while gradually bringing fees back to the 1999 level after this year.



• As the fees begin their gradual rise next year, we will also begin to raise the Manitoba Bursary by $8 million over the next three years, doubling its value to $16 million.

Inclusion

• To help more students overcome obstacles to completing high school we’ve invested $1 million in a Bright Futures fund.



• To encourage more residents of our remote northern communities to pursue a post-secondary education, we’ve created the University College of the North, with two main campuses and 12 regional centres, most of them on or near reserves.



• We’ve bolstered our ACCESS programs by nearly two-thirds since 1999. These programs provide a support network to students from under-represented groups, specifically people of Aboriginal ancestry, northerners, residents of the inner city, people with disabilities, women, single parents, immigrants and refugees.



• We’ve increased the number and value of our Training for Tomorrow scholarships for women studying math, science or technology at any of Manitoba’s community colleges.

Aboriginal student enrollment is up at our universities and colleges. The number of Aboriginal apprenticeships more than tripled since 1999, to over 1,300.

Moving forward on inclusion

• A new bursary will be introduced in 2009 to assist rural and northern students who experience unique costs associated with pursuing post-secondary education.

Quality

• Since 1999 we’ve increased the operating funding to colleges by 100%.



• We’ve removed all property taxes for universities.



• Since 1999 we’ve increased the operating funding of universities by 51.3%, or 58.4% when property tax relief is included.



• Our government has supported $478 million in new capital funding at our post-secondary institutions, including the Richardson College of the Environment at the U of W, the relocation of Assiniboine Community College to the refurbished Brandon Mental Health Centre, the Brandon University Health Studies Building, the new Engineering and IT Complex at the U of M, a new student union building at Collège universitaire de Saint-Boniface, a new downtown campus for Red River College, and renovations to Wesley Hall at the U of W.



• Through our College Expansion Initiative, we’ve funded over 80 new or expanded cutting-edge college training programs in key economic sectors such as health, aerospace, digital multi-media and information technology.



• Budget 2008 increased funding to provide for 1,100 new apprenticeships seats at the colleges beginning in September 2008.



• In partnership with Ottawa we’re investing in an $18 million program to provide training, employment support, and skills upgrading for people having difficulty entering the labour market.



• We’re building a new $46 million trades centre at Assiniboine Community College that will double apprenticeship and training opportunities to over 1,400 students.



• Two mobile training labs will enable Red River College to offer training in rural communities.



• We’re investing in a new and expanded $15M Heavy Equipment Transportation Centre at Red River College. Since 2001 enrollment in heavy-equipment transportation courses has more than doubled. The new building will allow the college to expand capacity by 60% to 368 students in 2009-10.

Moving Forward on Quality

• We’re putting $47 million over three years into the historic redevelopment of the University of Manitoba’s Fort Garry campus in a six-stage development plan called Project Domino.

Figures current as of October, 2008

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