Many of Ontario’s 500,000 students will be returning to class Tuesday at the province's 24 colleges following a five-week faculty strike.
MPP’s passed back-to-work legislation on the weekend, and teachers returned to work on Monday to prepare for the students return.
But some many elect to walk away from a now-condensed fall semester with a full tuition refund.
Advanced Education Minister Deb Matthews says the students will have two weeks from the resumption of classes Tuesday to decide whether or not they want to continue with the semester.
Matthews says the colleges will be expected to foot the bill for the refund.
A similar tuition rebate was offered to students after a strike in 2006 shuttered Ontario colleges for 18 days.
More than 10,000 students attend St. Clair College in Windsor and Chatham, where the record-long strike affected more than 330 staff.
Here are some of the date changes at St. Clair as part of its contingency plan:
• Classes will be extended to Dec. 22.
• The Holiday Break will be from Dec. 25 - Jan. 1. The college will be open on Dec. 27 - 30 to access services (e.g. Library, Tutoring and Open Computer Labs).
• Fall classes will resume on Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2018.
• Exams will be scheduled in Jan. 16-20, 2018.
• The January semester will be delayed accordingly but total semester duration will be 14 weeks (includes March Break).
• March Break (March 12 - March 16) will continue as planned, with the exception of the Collaborative Nursing program, which is scheduled Feb. 19 - Feb. 23.
College officials say due to changes to the academic calendar, contingency plans will support students who have prior travel commitments.
(With files from The Canadian Press)
