KINGSTON, ON – (April 30, 2026) – St. Lawrence College’s (SLC) Faculty Local 417 is saddened by today’s layoff of 28 full‑time faculty members across the Kingston, Brockville, and Cornwall campuses, as well as 16 faculty who have been involuntarily transferred to other programs (and/or SLC sites). These measures are in addition to the loss of many partial‑load faculty positions over the past year. They are a direct result of the ongoing program suspensions and service changes resulting from the college’s ongoing “Efficiency Audit.” The timing of these cuts has raised concerns across the community, particularly as they coincide with the recently announced merger process between SLC and Fleming College.
Communities across eastern Ontario have already begun voicing their concerns. Yesterday more than 70 faculty, support staff, students and community residents gathered in Cornwall to call for greater transparency and stability in the education sector. Many noted that programs long associated with SLC’s identity and regional workforce development have now been suspended.
The impact is particularly visible at the Brockville and Cornwall campuses, where libraries have already been replaced by a book vending machine. Programs affected include Business, General Arts & Science, Music Theatre – Performance, Visual and Creative Arts, Police Foundations, Personal Support Worker living classroom offerings, and Mental Wellness & Addictions Worker. In Kingston, suspensions include Culinary Skills, Child & Youth Care, Health Information Management, User Experience Design, Digital Marketing Communications, and several trades apprenticeships such as Brick & Stone Mason and General Machinist.
These academic changes have already been accompanied by reductions to student services across all three campuses. Students have seen decreased access to Accessibility Advisors, off‑campus Housing Advisors, and Student Success Facilitators. Brockville and Cornwall have experienced the closure of their campus libraries, replaced with limited self‑serve options. College‑wide, more than 100 support staff positions have been eliminated since 2024.
“The scale of these reductions raises important questions about long‑term planning and the future direction of the college,” says Christina Decarie, President of SLC Faculty Local 417. “Students and communities are already feeling the effects of these decisions. Our concern is that short‑term financial pressures are being addressed through cuts that will have long‑term consequences for access, quality, and regional workforce development.”
Local 417 acknowledges the broader financial pressures facing Ontario’s colleges, including long‑standing underfunding and recent changes to international student enrollment. However, the union notes that these pressures were identified years ago by sector experts, including the Auditor General, who warned in 2021 about the risks of over‑reliance on international tuition. Despite these warnings, colleges across the province continued to expand non‑academic administrative structures while relying heavily on short‑term, precarious contracts for frontline educators.
The union emphasizes that the suspended programs play a critical role in supporting local labour markets across southeastern Ontario. Reductions in areas such as health care, community services, hospitality and culinary, digital media, business, and skilled trades will have ripple effects for employers, municipalities, and students seeking accessible pathways into the workforce.
Local 417 is calling on the provincial government to stabilize the college system by restoring and increasing base operating funding, supporting program continuity, and ensuring students have access to well‑resourced learning environments. Sustainable investment, the union argues, is essential to maintaining the role of public colleges as key contributors to Ontario’s economic and social well‑being.