Durham College (DC) president Elaine Popp welcomes the latest changes to post-secondary funding announced by the Ontario government late last week, while saying more details are needed to get a clearer picture of what the new measures mean for the college.
“We have heard from the ministry that at some point [this] week, we should be receiving an update in terms of more institutional specific numbers and what that will mean to us,” Popp said in an interview with the Chronicle on Friday.
Post-secondary institutions across Canada have experienced a funding crunch since the federal government implemented a cap on international student permits in 2024, and further reduced them in 2025 and 2026.
In Ontario, tuition fees have been frozen since the 2019-20 academic year, making colleges and universities more reliant on the higher tuition paid by international students.
Popp said the college has seen a $67-million revenue loss since 2024, which she terms as “significant” on a $274-million revenue budget.
“We have been fortunate to have had great ideas from our employees here in terms of cost-saving strategies and revenue-generating ideas. We’ve been able to realize almost $40 million in reductions,” said Popp.
The latest announcement will allow colleges to hike tuition fees by up to two per cent per year for the next three years, after which increases will be limited to two per cent or the average inflation rate, whichever is less.
However, Popp said the decision on raising fees for Durham College student requires approval from the Board of Governors.
“Our average domestic tuition here at Durham is $2,722 for two semesters. So if you do two per cent on that, it works out to $54.44, as an example, so it isn’t a significant increase,” she said.
Asked how the changes may affect Durham College’s dependance on international student revenues, Popp said the college is focused on “maintaining an international student population here for international education purposes,” and achieving its enrolment targets for that cohort.
She said its ability to do so “depends on the federal government’s policies” and whether there will be further reductions in international student permits.
“There’s so many other advantages to having international students on campus besides their tuition,” said Popp, adding there is “uncertainty” among international students about choosing Canada for post-secondary education.
“I think one thing right now that’s also apparent is that there’s some healing needing to be done with the Canada brand,” said Popp. “There are other options besides Canada for them to consider. And so, we need to make sure Canada, Ontario [and] Durham College specifically is an attractive place for international students to come and study.”