For years, Scott Moe has refused to properly fund post-secondary, forcing many schools to rely on international student tuition to balance their books. Recently, changes to federal immigration rules have created a massive shortfall in funding — the impact has been particularly harsh at Sask Polytechnic where more than 100 faculty have been laid off.
Last week, information surfaced that the entire Health Information Management (HIM) program at the school had been suspended. HIM professionals work in areas such as data governance, privacy, data standards, digital transformation, and epidemiology, which directly impacts decision making not just in the Saskatchewan Health Authority but across many critical fields.
“Post-secondary is critical to our future — we want young people to stay right here, get their education, pursue their careers and raise their families,” said Tajinder Grewal, Advanced Education Shadow Minister. “We can’t have strong healthcare or a strong economy without a strong Sask. Poly. Education is provincial jurisdiction and Scott Moe is failing our young people so badly. It’s time for change.
“The provincial budget is coming next week — and this government has an opportunity to breathe life back into our flatlining post-secondary institutions.”
Grewal was joined in Question Period by Saskatchewan Polytechnic Faculty Association President Michelle Downton.
“Our members want to be working; we want to be educating students and giving them all the tools need to succeed and lead,” Downton said. “These layoffs have been devastating, and now entire programs are being closed.
“Despite our constant advocacy, we’ve gotten nothing more than lip service from the Sask. Party Government. We need support for Sask Poly, for our post-secondary schools in general.”