Conestoga College student association reduces, closes some services
Conestoga Students Inc. says more updates will come by August
Certain financial, academic and transportation services previously offered by Conestoga College's student association are being trimmed and potentially cut completely this spring and beyond.
An email from Conestoga Student Inc. (CSI) was sent to students and other college partners last Monday detailing some of the upcoming changes to their services. Their message notes that they are in the process of reworking their programs based on the needs of their "dynamic student population."
"While we understand that there will be an impact with any type of organization shift, we hope that by making strategic adjustments we can better serve your student experience from Spring semester and beyond," they wrote.
The following services are being adjusted:
- Waterloo Grocery Run and the Doon Grocery Run routes closed March 12 and April 15 respectively. These were shuttle routes that helped students travel to grocery stores.
- The Emergency Support Bursary application form, which is available to support students in financial need, is closed as of April 17. There were no details on whether or not this was a permanent closure.
- CSI will no longer support the academic appeal process as of May 2.
- CSI shuttle services will reduce routes for Spring semester (May-August 2025) and discontinue the service August 15.
- The Student Nutritional Access program (SNAP), which helps students experiencing food insecurity, will pause operations for the spring semester. CSI plans to announce an update to the program by August 15.
CSI has been Conestoga College's official student association since 1973. They are independent of the college, according to their website, but still work in conjunction with them to support students.
The college itself is in the midst of reorganization as they prepare to transition students from downtown campuses in Kitchener and Brantford in the coming months.
Ontario colleges have all felt the blow of an international student cap that has caused many changes. Conestoga itself had student intake cut by 50 per cent. Meanwhile, support staff at the college were told at the beginning of April to expect layoffs in the near future.
CBC K-W reached out to CSI about these changes but they declined to comment.
Their message to students further said that they are "saddened by the closure of programs that have been with [students] for many years."
It's currently unclear as to what impact the reorganization of these services will have on students in September 2025 and beyond.