A new bursary being offered to community college students is hoping to reduce sizeable barriers to post-secondary education.
The New Brunswick Community College (NBCC) is eliminating all tuition and program fees for those who spent a year or more in foster care or group homes.
Mary Ellen Kingston-Ritchie, NBCC’s director of student development, says this is an initiative happening across the country, but it’s believed to be the first in New Brunswick.
“It’s a means of trying to focus on underrepresented groups within New Brunswick and we saw it as a good add-on to our supports and services that we have for students,” she said.
Students must first apply to NBCC and get accepted. They would then indicate they were a youth in care and the college would work with them to validate that.
If students are accepted from that point, all fees and tuition would be covered for their program.
Kingston-Ritchie said they want to support at least 10 students annually, but if they enroll part-time into programs, that’s part-time tuition and the college can take on additional people.
She said students will be offered supports and services throughout their program to ensure they have a contact that can help with any challenges during their time at NBCC.
Kingston-Ritchie said some people raised in care may not have been ready for post-secondary studies right after high school.
“This gives an opportunity for those people to have an opportunity to come to college and to make I would think significant differences in their socio-economic status,” she said.
Kingston-Ritchie said whether they graduate with NBCC or not, they hope students are better off than before they came to the college.
She said she hopes they feel like they got a leg up to better reach where they want to be in their careers and are closer to where they want to be as a citizen within the province.
Kingston-Ritchie said she started her career in social development many years ago and this announcement is kind of a full circle for her.
“It’s exciting to see that they’re going to have an opportunity to make their life what they may not have thought possible before this announcement.”
