Several private schools meet their tuition fees downwards

Many private schools in Quebec are planning to reduce the increase in tuition fees that they had initially planned to impose on the parents of their students, following the Legault government’s decision to limit the budgetary restrictions that they face, learned The duty.

Last June, private schools learned that Quebec required budgetary restrictions amounting to $ 56.9 million, the equivalent of around $ 475 less per pupil, according to calculations by the Federation of Private Education Establishments (FEEP).

In order to avoid having to restrict the services to students, several private establishments have therefore announced to the parents of their students that they will have to pay from this fall a few hundred dollars more than provided by child as tuition fees.

“We had asked for an additional contribution to parents of $ 250 initially,” said the Duty The director general of the Bourget college, located in Rigaud, Philippe Bertrand. However, the latter had undertaken to review this increase in school fees downwards, in the event that Quebec is revising its decision.

However, precisely, before the popular discontent, the Minister of Education, Bernard Drainville, turned into mid-July by announcing a reinvestment of 540 million throughout the school network. Of this amount, 29 million are intended for private schools. These then saw the magnitude of the budgetary restrictions which had been imposed on them the previous month being reduced by half.

Result: Philippe Bertrand will limit the increase in tuition fees imposed by his establishment to $ 125 per pupil, he says. A case that is far from unique.

“The majority of establishments, I would tell you, will revise the increase in tuition fees,” confirms the president of the Association of Directors General of Quebec Private Education Schools, Éric Deguire. The decisions made to this effect will be communicated to the parents concerned within two weeks, he said.

“We haven’t decided yet [de combien]but it is certain that we will decrease the increase to parents, ”also confirms the president and chief executive officer of the Sainte-Anne college, in Montreal, Ugo Cavenaghi, who intends to approach this option with the members of his board of directors.

Uncertainty remains

Some establishments had decided not to increase their students’ education rights last June, despite the budgetary restrictions then imposed by the State. This is the case of the Charles-Lemoyne college, which rather put maintenance and enlargement projects on a break and “cut some positions which were on display”. Decisions that the establishment has decided to maintain, for the moment.

“We maintained our decisions waiting to see how the school year will go, then aware of the year, if everything is positive, that there are no other surprises, we will reinvest at that time,” said the Director General of the Longueuil Private School and President of Feep, David Bowles. The latter also recalls that the recent reinvestment made by Quebec only covered part of the budgetary restrictions initially imposed on private schools, whose financial situation also depends on the number of students who register and remain there later.

The repercussions of the recent reinvestment of Quebec on the recruitment of employees by private schools therefore remain uncertain and will vary from one establishment to another, “on a case -by -case basis”, sees Éric Deguire. The latter believes that some schools will decide to hire in the coming weeks, while others will prefer to be caution.

“We will wait a few months, the time to really know the ministry’s tags,” notes Patricia Steben, the director general of the Montreal College, who currently ignores whether she will be able to take up certain hires that she had had to put on pause due to the budgetary restrictions imposed by the State.

Certainly, summarizes Eric Deguire, “a big challenge” awaits the directorates of private schools in the coming weeks.

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