Dawson College students in Quebec City to demand government reconsider expansion project

Members of the Dawson Student Union (DSU) descended on Quebec City Wednesday morning to present a petition that demands the provincial government reverse its decision not to allocate $200 million to the expansion of Dawson College.

Westmount Liberal MNA Jennifer Maccarone presented the petition on behalf of the students in the legislature.

“We are very thankful for all the support we have received from across Quebec,” Dawson Student Union President Alexandrah Cardona said. “We hope the government will listen to Dawson students and our supporters. We deserve the same services and facilities as all CEGEP students. We don’t want more than other students, we just want what is fair."

The college's community was outraged after the Quebec government announced that it was cancelling the expansion project in favour of financing French-language CEGEPS.

Over the last few weeks, the college says it has tried in vain to organize a meeting with provincial officials.

"It’s not just about trying to save a building at Dawson," said academic dean Rob Cassidy at the time. "It’s really about sending a message to the government to treat its communities, to treat all Quebecers, equitably."

If approved, the Dawson expansion would have created more than 11,000 square metres of space to house a community clinic and all seven of the CEGEP's health care programs.

“Our graduates from the health care programs do not become anglophone nurses, doctors and technicians. They become Quebec nurses, doctors and technicians and they serve in every region,” argued Arwen Low, vice-president of external affairs of the DSU.

The project was seven years in the making, with Dawson officials saying the campus has lacked adequate space for 20 years.

The petition garnered about 20,000 signatures.