University of Winnipeg paying kids to stay in school longer

The University of Winnipeg has begun a program aimed at closing the “graduation gap” for hundreds of students traditionally under-represented at university by providing kids funding before their even finished high school.

The “earn as you learn” approach is unique for a university in Canada, designed to assist Aboriginal children, young people from war-affected nations and refugee populations, and students from inner-city neighbourhoods – obtain financial help and encouragement to be successful in school, the university says.

The Opportunity Fund is a comprehensive, three-part program, including fast-track bursaries, micro-financing, and tuition credits, that assists children as early as Grade 4 and extends all the way to adult learners.

The successful fast-track bursary program has already provided financial help to more than 100 young adults this past academic year including Muuxi Adam and Danielle Jenner.

Muuxi Adam arrived in Winnipeg as a teenage refugee from Somalia, struggling to overcome the effects of working 16-hour days without pay in a garage fixing cars. He received a $1,200 bursary through the Opportunity Fund to attend the University of Winnipeg and is now a promising filmmaker interested in international development, creating work on topics such as gangs and HIV-AIDS.

“It is really hard to get a good job to pay for school as a young immigrant,” Muuxi said. “We face multiple barriers, and the bursary has made a big difference to me.”

Métis student Danielle Jenner just completed two courses at the university with the help of an Opportunity Fund bursary.

“I was a drug addict living on the streets,” says the 19 year-old. “I hated myself. Now what I want to do more than anything else is become a social worker. This bursary gives people a chance to go to school, and to feel better about themselves.”

Funding is being provided by the federal and provincial governments, BMO Financial Group, TD Bank Financial Group, Scotiabank and McLean Budden Ltd.

“We know that one of the most critical challenges facing us as a community is the gap that exists between young people who are able to obtain a post-secondary education and those, through no fault of their own, who are not,” said Dr. Lloyd Axworthy, University of Winnipeg president & vice-chancellor.

Currently, UWinnipeg’s Innovative Learning Centre works with inner-city school children and offers programs such as the Eco-Kids and EnviroTechs. Starting in September, dozens of these students will begin earning tuition credits to encourage them to complete high school, thus closing the graduation gap and providing them with the support to obtain a post-secondary education at UWinnipeg.

Students from Grades 9 through 12 will earn $500-$750 for each school year completed. Students from Grades 4 to 8 can earn up to $200 per year. When, for example, students successfully complete high school, they have the potential to earn up to $4,000 towards their UWinnipeg education.

"I believe it will make a huge difference for our children to know that we recognize their potential and care enough about them to secure them a spot for higher education,” said Anastasia Yereniuk, Principal at Strathcona School. “The fact that money would be available for them to continue their educational journey is sure to make the transition seamless."

The Opportunity Fund Tuition Credit Account program is coordinated through UWinnipeg’s Innovative Learning Centre. Contact: tuitioncredits@uwinnipeg.ca.

The Opportunity Fund Bursary program is coordinated through UWinnipeg’s Financial Awards office. Contact: awards@uwinnipeg.ca.