With the recent closure campuses due to the COVID-19 virus, Lambton College, (Sarnia, Mississauga & Toronto) has decided to implement a number of preventative measures to reduce the likelihood of the virus spreading to the student population. Such measures include the canceling all face to face classes, co-op/collaborative/consolidation learning opportunities and practical labs, transitioning our final weeks of instruction to a variety of online platforms. While we applaud Lambton College's initiative for putting the student’s health and safety as the main priority, it is important to consider the financial impact on the students... for example, the BScN program is over $3000 per semester. Additionally, all of students attending the Mississauga and Toronto campuses are international students (along with a cohort in Sarnia) who pay more than 3 times that amount. When most students agreed to take on the financial burden of taking out loans to pay tuition, we did so because we expected to receive in-person face-to-face instruction, as well as the opportunity to seek out and receive help from our professors. Although Lambton appears to be doing their best to provide support in a variety of ways, the foundation of our learning is watered down. Many students chose Lambton because of the opportunity to receive in-person instruction, rather than receive their education online (ie; RPN to RN bridging program is offered at several Canadian educational institutions in an online format). Because of the circumstances of this decision, this is now no longer a reasonable possibility for students, and we are now essentially stuck paying thousands of dollars for online classes. This does not account for fees for campus activity fees (activities which have all been canceled),  lab fees, parking fees, lab supplies, building fees, facilities fees, etc. It is no longer fair to charge students for such amenities. To compound our educational concerns, many students may be suffering financial hardships related to job losses and family responsibilities.

Because of the financial impact of this decision, we are asking the LAMBTON COLLEGE to give partial refunds to all students.