Thank you to everyone who came out yesterday for the Show Your Work Rally. Seeing faculty, staff, students, and community members standing together was a powerful reminder that our college community cares deeply about transparency, public education, and the programs we have all worked so hard to build.
We would also like to extend our sincere thanks to the speakers who joined us and helped amplify these concerns: MPP Chandra Pasma, Music and Industry Arts Coordinator Colin Mills, OPSEU Local 416 President Christine Kelsey, and others who lent their voices and support. Their contributions helped underscore that this issue extends beyond a single program or department — it speaks to the future of public post-secondary education in Ontario.
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If you were unable to attend but would like to take action, there are several ways you can still support this effort:
1. Sign the petition calling on Algonquin College leadership to release the Efficiency & Accountability Report.
If this report informed decisions about program cuts, the college community deserves to see the analysis behind those decisions.
2. Email the Board of Governors and ask them to reconsider the March 2 Board vote on program suspensions.
The consolidated vote bundled thirty programs together, preventing proper individual consideration. No updated financial analysis was released following the provincial funding announcement, and faculty, staff, students, and community stakeholders were not meaningfully consulted prior to the decision.
3. Call on Premier Doug Ford to reinvest in public post-secondary education.
Chronic underfunding is driving layoffs, program closures, and service cuts across Ontario’s colleges. We are calling on the provincial government to permanently increase base funding for colleges — without shifting costs onto students through reduced OSAP support or higher tuition.
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When people show up, speak out, and stand together, it matters. Every voice adds weight to the call for transparency, accountability, and a strong public college system.
In solidarity,
Your Local 415 Leadership Team
Tracy Henderson, President
Judy Puritt, First Vice-President
Martin Lee, Second Vice-President
Shelley Robertson, Acting Lead Steward
Jordan Berard, Acting Secretary
Patrick Kostiw, Acting Treasurer