Written by: Maya Paddon
Each year, the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) helps hundreds of thousands of students across Ontario fund their post-secondary education. OSAP can cover expenses related to tuition, residence and living spaces, academic materials, and more.
Formerly, 85% of financial aid offered through OSAP came from grants; money that did not need to be repaid over time. The remaining 15% of financial assistance from OSAP came in the form of loans; money that must be repaid over time, with interest. However, on February 12th, 2026, Ontario Premier Doug Ford revealed that his Conservative provincial government would be altering the OSAP system by decreasing the number of grants available to a 25% maximum, and increasing loans to 75% of the total funding available through OSAP. The Premier has argued that these changes will fund post-secondary institutions across the province directly, and encourage students to enter fields he believes are in high demand and will promote economic developments, such as the trades and STEM-related studies (Lang).
As a result of these cuts to OSAP grants, thousands of high school and post-secondary students across the province have expressed their fears over how they will fund their post-secondary educations, and have voiced their displeasure with Ford’s pressure on students to enter a certain set of academic fields. Consequently, numerous protests and walkouts across Ontario have occurred in recent weeks as students communicate their concerns. KCI students have been among those that have spoken out about their frustration with regards to the OSAP cuts.
Province-Wide Walkout
On Wednesday, March 11th, a province-wide high school ‘walkout’ took place, seeing thousands of students leave the classroom to protest at their local city halls or government offices. Many KCI students, and students from across the Waterloo Region District School Board, participated in this walkout. They headed to Kitchener City Hall to demonstrate their displeasure with the OSAP changes.
Sadie Ring, a grade eleven student at KCI who partook in the walkout, explained why she attended the protest, saying, “I understand that many students like myself are in need of that extra help. I think that education is very important, and I believe everyone deserves the same opportunities and access to post-secondary education.”
Meanwhile, Quentin Dunning, another grade eleven KCI student who took part in both the March 11th walkout and an earlier protest, noted that he participated for other people: “I’m not personally affected by these cuts…but I know people are affected. I know people might have to change their majors because they don’t have enough money,” Quentin said.
Both Sadie and Quentin agreed that the March 11th walkout was filled with energy. Quentin revealed, “It was a great atmosphere. Obviously lots of enthusiasm, lots of annoyance and anger.” Sadie mentioned, “There were over 300 students who showed up in support, from not only KCI, but also ECI and CHCI. You could really feel a sense of shared purpose among us all as many people, including myself, were holding up signs and chanting in unison…Despite the rainy weather, we all walked down King Street getting soaked head to toe to fight for our province’s future and education.” Sadie also noted that passersby stopped to take photos, honk their car horns, and “admire our work.”
Legal Perspective
When speaking with The Edge, Mr. Millar, a KCI law and business teacher, spoke about the legal perspective of the OSAP changes. Through referencing the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and specifically the freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly, Mr. Millar explained why many students are actively choosing to demonstrate their concerns in the form of walkouts and protests: “I do want my students to take their Charter rights seriously,” he said. “And if they do believe that the government is overstepping their bounds or making their life worse, they should be willing to do something about it, and that’s what we want young people to do.”
Mr. Millar also discussed the general fear he has been able to gauge from his students through various class discussions: “They’re unhappy,” he noted, adding, “I teach grade twelve law…[those students] are right in the midst of thinking about their post-secondary choices.”
Although Mr. Millar emphasized that teachers cannot encourage students to skip school to participate in protests, he stated, “My fear as an educator is that [the OSAP changes] are going to discourage people from seeking post-secondary education.”
Staying Informed
Since Ford’s announcement of the changes to OSAP, many opinions from various students, teachers, parents and guardians, and political officials have emerged. To keep up with new information, Sadie, Quentin, and Mr. Millar all concur that students should remain informed on how these cuts impact themselves and others.
Sadie noted that she likes to read the news regularly to stay up to date with new information released. She encouraged other students to do the same, explaining, “Students can stay informed on these changes by engaging and interacting with posts about these cuts. Whether it be larger websites, smaller unions, or straight from the government itself, ensuring you see these updates is important.”
Like Sadie, Quentin shared that he, too, checks the news on a daily basis. He also revealed that he follows multiple political parties on social media to see their perspectives on the OSAP changes. Quentin urged students to look into the OSAP changes themselves, explaining, “Do your research! Go online, see what’s going on. I would say it’s not hard to stay involved, you just have to actually keep up.”
Meanwhile, Mr. Millar argued that students should look to local sources for unbiased information: “Stay away from politics,” he advised students. Mr. Millar continued, “Often when politicians are talking about topics like this, they’re always talking in the extremes…Go to the OSAP website, talk to guidance counsellors…Talk to people who aren’t necessarily motivated by politics.”
Ultimately, as two students who are evidently passionate about standing up against Ford and his changes to OSAP, Sadie and Quentin agreed that all students should care about OSAP cuts, whether they are directly affected or not. Sadie argued, “These changes impact the future workforce, the cost of living, economic mobility, and the overall quality of Ontario’s public services.” Quentin explained why students entering a variety of fields is important: “When we don’t fund these things, what’s inevitably going to happen is the majors and degrees that make more money are the only ones people are going to go into…But we need more people going into the arts because we need a wide variety,” he concluded.
If you have questions about the recent changes made to OSAP, reach out to your guidance counsellor or visit the OSAP website.
Works Cited
Lang, Ethan. “‘I’m a Guy Trying to Be a Nurse’: Why Ford’s OSAP Changes May Make It Harder to Get In-Demand Jobs.” CBC, 19 Feb. 2026, www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/osap-changes-deterring-students-9.7096442#:~:text=Ford%20doubled%20down%20on%20the,the%20jobs%20of%20the%20future.%22&text=%E2%80%9CThe%20taxpayers%20expect%20the%20students,are%20now%20reconsidering%20their%20studies.&text=Ontario%20Premier%20Doug%20Ford%20is,under%20us%2C%22%20Watson%20said. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.