QUESTION PERIOD — Ministry of Indigenous Services—Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario
Access to Post-Secondary Education Funding
November 24, 2022
Minister, Call to Action 11 from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission report calls for adequate federal funding support for Indigenous students seeking a post-secondary education, but according to the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations, only 19% of about 25,000 eligible Indigenous learners received funding from the Post-Secondary Student Support Program each year.
Can you tell us what your government is planning to do to increase funding for Indigenous students? Can you also tell us whether you would be open to expanding the terms of the ISET Program — the Indigenous Skills and Employment Training Program — so it is less strictly tied to labour market outcomes?
Thank you very much.
I was proud to be the minister of the former Department of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour when the ISET Program received a historic increase — 58% more funding and a 10-year commitment — that allows adult education and ISET’s programs, which is Indigenous secondary education training programs, to have a longer runway to help people achieve their education and training goals.
I’m interested to hear more about the flexibilities the honourable member is talking about, and she can certainly share them with the current minister under whose portfolio that falls.
In terms of the shortfall for post-secondary education supports, our government has taken historic measures to make post‑secondary education more affordable. Often, First Nations and Indigenous students still have barriers to attending because of lives, quite frankly, that include poverty. That makes going to school and staying in school very challenging.
So I share her ambition around increasing access to post‑secondary education for First Nations students. I think every student who has the capacity, an acceptance letter and an ability to attend post-secondary should have a smooth passage to those studies and that training. Not only is that good for the individual, but it is good for communities. It certainly is good for Canada. We need every ounce of talent as we face these enormous challenges together.
So I will be focused on working with my colleagues, the Minister of Finance and others, to ensure that the department has better capacity.
