Access to Post-Secondary Education for Youth in Care: The Atlantic Tuition Waiver Project
Topic(s): 
Child Welfare
Youth
Webinar event date: 
oct 27, 2026 12:00 pm EDT
Webinar link
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Webinar Presenters: 
  • Dr. Jacqueline Gahagan, Principal Investigator, Atlantic Tuition Waiver Project & Full Professor, Mount Saint Vincent University

    Jacqueline (Jacquie) Gahagan, PhD (Medical Sociology) (They/Them) is Associate Vice-President of Research and Full Professor at Mount Saint Vincent University (MSVU) in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Jacquie’s program of health promotion research focuses on developing and evaluating policies and programs using sex and gender-based analyses (SGBA+) to identity and address structural drivers of health inequities among equity-deserving populations. Jacquie's funded studies include scaling-up of access to innovative HIV testing strategies, improving health outcomes of 2SLGBTQI+ populations through access to affirming housing and healthcare, 2SLGBTQI+ end-of-life decision-making, and access to education among care experienced Canadians. Jacquie has received numerous awards for their ongoing efforts in advancing social inclusion and health equity, including the King Charles Coronation Medal from Egale Canada in 2025, a Doctor of Laws, Honoris Causa in 2024, the Order of Nova Scotia in 2023, the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal in 2023, and the Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research (CANFAR) Leadership Award in 2022, among others.

    Dr. Melanie Doucet, PhD Social Work, Executive Director & Project Lead, National Council of Youth in Care Advocates (NCYICA)

    Dr. Doucet has been working to improve the lives of youth in care for nearly 20 years. She is a former youth in care originally from New Brunswick, and is now based in the unceded traditional territory of the Kanyenʼkehá꞉ka (Mohawk) Nation in Montreal, Quebec. She holds a PhD in Social Work, is an expert consultant, an Adjunct Professor at the McGill University School of Social Work, a member of the McGill Centre for Research on Children and Families (CRCF) and the Executive Director of the newly established lived experience-led organization, the National Council of Youth in Care Advocates (NCYICA). Dr. Doucet is a renowned public and keynote speaker on the importance of equitably supporting youth in and from care from a rights-based and humane perspective, and is an award-winning researcher. She continues to work as part of provincial, territorial and national youth in care advocacy communities on child protection policy and practice reform initiatives, and is currently leading the Equitable Transitions to Adulthood for Youth in Care project alongside the members of the National Council of Youth in Care Advocates.

Description

Youth in care face stark educational inequities: high school completion rates are less than half those of their peers, and 73% repeat a grade compared to 20% of other students. These barriers follow them into adulthood, with post-secondary enrollment at just half the rate of their peers. Youth in care face systemic barriers that most students never have to consider. Interrupted schooling, placement and housing instability, limited adult guidance, trauma and unmet mental health needs all influence whether a young person can remain enrolled and succeed. The Atlantic Tuition Waiver Project has examined the impact of initiatives that waive tuition and mandatory fees for former youth in care across 10 Atlantic Canadian post-secondary institutions, with the aim to find ways to improve educational access, retention and graduation for care-experienced students. Key project findings highlight the need for holistic supports alongside financial assistance to ensure youth in care graduate from their programs, and is line with the holistic, wraparound approach of the Equitable Standards for Transitions to Adulthood for Youth in Care.

During this webinar, the audience will learn about:

  • An overview of the Education & Professional Development Pillar of the Equitable Standards for Transitions to Adulthood for Youth in Care
  • An overview of post-majority supports available across Canada to youth in care pursuing post-secondary education
  • An overview of the Atlantic Tuition Waiver Project, key findings and recommendations
    The implications for child welfare policy and practice
  • Key next steps