OPSEU Local 685 Thanks You for Your Support
Heartfelt thanks to everyone who signed our petition to save our programs. We gathered over 1000 signatures from faculty, staff, students, and concerned citizens, as well as members of faculty associations across Canada. Due to your help, as of the Fall 2025 semester, the program pauses have now been lifted. You have helped us save our five programs that had been abruptly suspended earlier this spring: Geography, History, Music, Sociology, and Visual Arts. We have a lot of work ahead to do to rebuild our programs. OPSEU Algoma University Local 685 thanks you for your support.
History: Paused Programs in the News
Links to some of the recent media coverage of the program pauses. Arranged with the most recent news items on the top. The petition to save our programs is now closed.
- Algoma U union hopes interim president will fight for liberal arts and workplace rights | SooToday June 30, 2025
- Algoma U names new interim president | The Sault Star June 26, 2025
- Lack of post-secondary music programs next year concerns educators, musicians in northeastern Ontario | CBC Lite June 19, 2025
- Algoma University senate urges reversal of admissions freeze | The Hamilton Spectator — June 9, 2025
- Algoma University senate urges reversal of admissions freeze | The Penticton Herald — June 9, 2025
- Algoma University senate urges reversal of admissions freeze | The Sault Star — June 9, 2025
- Algoma U’s senate challenges decision to pause enrolment for five programs | SooToday — June 6, 2025
- Algoma University faces backlash for pausing enrolment in arts and humanities | The Sault Star — May 30, 2025
- Algoma U community rallies against paused enrolments | SooToday — May 30, 2025
- Paused Program Party — Was Thursday, May 29, 2025. OPSEU Local 685 hosted a Paused Programs Party at the Sault Museum at 6 pm on Thursday, May 29. Click here for the poster. Also, click the May 30 articles above for news reports on the Party in the SooToday and The Sault Star. The Algoma University ensemble played for us as we arrived. There were refreshments and speakers. We celebrated the contributions of these five paused programs — History, Geography, Music, Sociology, and Visual Arts — to our University and broader community. Thanks, Everyone, for coming!
- AlgomaU, Portage announce program changes | Academica Group –May 26, 2025 • AB, ON • (this article links to two of the stories listed below)
- Union planning event to defend liberal arts programs at Algoma U | SooToday — May 27, 2025
- Algoma University faces backlash over program pauses amid budget concerns | CTV News — May 21, 2025
- Faculty, community raise questions about Algoma University suspending programs, including music | CBC News — May 21, 2025
- Algoma University has temporarily suspended admissions to its music program | Morning North with Markus Schwabe — May 21, 2025
- Algoma University cuts its music program amid loss of international students | Roots Music Canada — May 20, 2025
- LETTER: Algoma University’s crisis was years in the making | SooToday — May 6, 2025
- Algoma University pauses five programs to improve finances | Penticton Herald — May 5, 2025
- Algoma University pauses five programs to improve long-term sustainability | The Sault Star — May 5, 2025
- Algoma U pausing admissions on five low-enrolment programs | SooToday — May 4, 2025
- Algoma University pauses some first-year programs in budget restructuring efforts | CTV News — May 3, 2025
- 5 programs at Algoma University no longer taking in new students for 1 year | CBC News — May 2, 2025