May 13, 2026

The Government of Alberta announced $384M in funding this week to build NAIT’s Advanced Skills Centre. The centre will house 29 of NAIT’s programs across construction, energy, manufacturing, and transportation, providing NAIT with the capacity to train an extra 5,500 students per year in trades and technology. Former NAIT Board Chair Yasmin Jivraj called the centre an “exciting next chapter,” saying that the facility will allow NAIT to meet the workforce needs required to build the province’s future. Construction is expected to begin in 2027, with completion scheduled for Fall 2030.

The Government of Canada is partnering with provincial and territorial governments to support worker retraining and upskilling. Canada and the Government of Nova Scotia have announced a partnership agreement that will support 1,557 workers affected by tariffs as they retrain, reskill, and upskill through a three-year $13.8M investment. In the Yukon, Canada and the territorial government have signed the three-year Canada‑Yukon Workforce Tariff Response, which will see $1.5M invested in helping 200 Yukon workers retrain or build new skills. Canada also announced $4.5M through Clean Energy for Rural and Remote Communities (CERRC) in British Columbia to support projects related to clean energy generation and worker training.

The Toronto Star recently investigated Government of Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s claims that the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) needed to be overhauled due to abuse of the system. According to the data, $8.3M in student assistance funding was wrongly issued last year, relative to $2B in total student assistance disbursed through OSAP in the 2024–25 fiscal year. The Star notes that in the past two years, approximately 1,800 cases of wrongly issued funds were investigated, of which 530 were deemed to be egregious violations. However, data was not provided as to how much funding had been recouped. While ON Colleges and Universities Minister Press Secretary Bianca Giacoboni stated that misuse of funding is “unacceptable,” Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario Chairperson Cyrielle Ngeleka said the claims of abuse are being used to justify austerity measures.

The University of New Brunswick has launched a PhD in Nursing, which UNB says is the only program of its kind in New Brunswick. This program features instruction in a primarily online format and several short in-person residencies over the first year, followed by three years focused on dissertation research. The hybrid model makes the program more accessible to nurses who may want to work while completing their studies. “In the long run, the hybrid delivery model allows nurses to stay closer to their home and continue working towards their doctorate,” said UNB Faculty of Nursing and Health Sciences Acting Associate Dean, Research & Graduate Studies Dr Lisa Keeping-Burke.

NSERC, CIHR, and SSHRC have announced the recipients of the Dimensions Canada grants. Through this competition, $1.1M has been awarded to 11 projects that were developed collaboratively by 28 institutions. These projects are focused on fostering an inclusive, equitable research environment across Canadian postsecondary institutions by creating and sharing tools and resources to address barriers and drive change. “Dimensions Canada grants recipients have demonstrated a significant commitment to advancing equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility across the Canadian postsecondary sector,” said NSERC President Alejandro Adem. “The collaborative projects announced today will help strengthen institutional practices and support lasting cultural change.”

Nine protesters who were removed from the University of Calgary’s campus in 2024 during a pro-Palestinian encampment are suing UCalgary, the Calgary Police Service (CPS), and the City of Calgary. According to CBC, the lawsuit alleges that CPS officers used “unnecessary and unreasonable force” when removing the group of protestors at the request of UCalgary officials. The lawsuit also alleges that UCalgary issued trespass notices without regard for protestors’ Charter rights and without discussion or serious review of whether the protest presented any risks. The plaintiffs—which include three UCalgary students and four alumni—are seeking more than $331K in damages, as well as legal costs and declarations that their rights were violated. UCalgary stated that it “will review any statement of claim received through the courts and respond as appropriate.” None of the allegations have been tested in court.

In a recent article for University Business, Larry Parker II and Miguel Baique (University of Rochester) discuss the importance of viewing student success as a process of change rather than a static outcome. Parker II and Baique explain the five stages of readiness—precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance—and their connection to student behaviours and success. They highlight examples from each stage of readiness and discuss the barriers and challenges students may face in that stage, as well as the supports that are best attuned to these stages. They conclude by encouraging practitioners to evaluate student readiness and implement proactive strategies to improve outcomes.

A new white paper authored by Government of Québec MNA Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois has found that boys are “systematically disadvantaged” in the province’s education system. The report found that the high school dropout rate for boys was 27.1%, compared to 19.9% for girls. This data has significant implications for postsecondary attainment in Canada, as boys are not completing high school and entering postsecondary at the same rate as girls. “If boys were graduating as much as girls are graduating from university [in Canada], we would have over 65,000 more boys obtaining a university-level diploma [each year],” Economist Catherine Haeck told CBC. Nadeau-Dubois offers three recommendations to reduce disparities between boys and girls which include offering varied and stimulating pathways for students and ending three-tiered schooling in the province.

Several members of the community have expressed their frustration with the findings of the Government of Ontario’s audit of Conestoga College and called for the removal of John Tibbits’ name from Conestoga’s Waterloo campus buildings. CTV News and the Waterloo Region Record report that members of OPSEU Local 238 and local community members have called for the removal of the former president’s name from the campus. High school students and current Conestoga students told CBC that they felt the funds used for travel should have been used for education. NDP MPPs Catherine Fife and Peggy Sattler released a joint statement asserting that ON is “trying to wash its hands of a crisis it helped create” at the college.

Alberta University of the Arts and ATB Financial have partnered on a multi-year initiative that will see artwork by AU Arts alumni installed in ATB’s spaces. This year, 14 alumni will have their artwork installed in high-traffic ATB branches and corporate locations across Canada. The artworks will embed creativity in public-facing spaces by reflecting the communities. “As we celebrate 100 years of creativity and community, this partnership reflects the importance of creativity across sectors and the impact of our alumni,” said AU Arts President Dr Janis Goldie. “Their work is redefining culture, industry and public life across Alberta and beyond — demonstrating the influence of art, craft and design, and the role AU Arts plays in shaping a creative future.”