Honourable Chester Gillan, Minister of Education signed an agreement today with the Canada Millennium Scholarship (CMS) Foundation which will make post-secondary education more accessible and affordable for Island students. Minister Gillan and Norman Riddell, CMS Foundation Executive Director and CEO, signed the agreement today in Charlottetown which will reduce student debt for approximately 440 Island students.
"This is wonderful news for Island students because it will help to reduce student debt and provide financial assistance to those with the greatest need," said Honourable Chester Gillan, Minister of Education. "The Government of Prince Edward Island is pleased to collaborate with the Foundation to make post-secondary education more affordable and accessible for Islanders."
"This agreement means more and better access to education for many PEI students," added Norman Riddell CMS Foundation Executive Director and CEO. "While other countries are building monuments to mark the beginning of the new millennium, we can be proud that thanks to the initiative of the government of Canada we are investing today in our country's most important resource, its young people."
Starting in January 2000, and continuing for the next 10 years, almost $1.3 million will be awarded annually to PEI students in Canada Millennium Scholarships. There will be two types of awards: general awards and exceptional merit awards. General Awards will represent 95% of the funds to be distributed and will be based on financial need and merit, for students pursuing full-time undergraduate studies at public and private post-secondary institutions. Each year, approximately 440 full-time post-secondary PEI students who receive government financial assistance will be awarded a General Award.
Exceptional Merit Awards will represent 5% of the funds to be distributed. These awards will be available each year on the basis of academic merit to 21 PEI graduating high school students.
The new grant system comes into effect August 1, with the first CMS general awards being issued in January 2000. The first CMS exceptional merit awards will be provided in September 2000. The CMS Foundation is developing the details for awarding the exceptional merit scholarships.
The Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation is an autonomous organization created by the Parliament of Canada, after Prime Minister Jean Chretien's 1997 commitment to promote access to post-secondary education. It oversees a $2.5-billion fund received from the Government of Canada.
For more information, contact David MacPherson, Manager of Student Financial Services, PEI Dept. of Education, (902) 368-4603; or Jean Lapierre, Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation, (514) 284-7235.
Visit the PEI web site at http://www.gov.pe.ca/educ/index.asp or visit the Foundation web site at http://www.millenniumscholarships.ca OR http://www.boursesmillenaire.ca
BACKGROUNDER
Prince Edward Island's CMS awards will be issued based on the following principles:
I. GENERAL AWARDS
These Awards will represent 95% of the funds to be distributed. They will be provided to full-time undergraduate students with the highest financial need, as determined by the Canada Student Loan/Prince Edward Island Student Loan needs assessment and eligibility criteria.
To qualify, a student must:
- be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident within the meaning of the Immigration Act;
- be eligible for student financial assistance in PEI;
- be enrolled at an eligible institution as a full time student as defined by the student financial assistance program of the province;
- be pursuing studies that lead to a diploma, certificate or diploma from the institution in which a student is enrolled;
- demonstrate need as defined by the provincial student financial assistance program;
- have successfully completed 60 per cent of a full year of post-secondary education within the last 10 years at an eligible Canadian post-secondary educational institution;
- be in good standing in an approved course of study at the time the award is paid;
- not have received assistance from the Foundation for more than $15,000 or 32 months.
Verification will be received from the school currently attended that satisfactory progress and attendance has been maintained in the first half of the program of studies.
Awards will be issued in the second semester of the program of studies.
Awards will range between $2,000 and $4,000 in $500 increments.
Awards will be applied to student debt.
Recipients will be selected in November 1999, in order of highest need, subject to a correctly-completed Earnings Verification Form.
II. EXCEPTIONAL MERIT AWARDS
These awards will represent 5% of the funds distributed. Each individual high school student who demonstrate academic excellence, exceptional leadership and community service may qualify for as many as two of the 21 awards of $3,000 each, totalling $63,000. Two levels of awards will be provided from the Prince Edward Island allocation; one based on nominations from the local or regional level and the other at the provincial level.
Program implementation details will be shared with school boards, high schools and appropriate community groups throughout the province.