Dal, King's latest Atlantic Canada schools offering former kids in care free tuition

A Dalhousie University sign is seen in Halifax on January 6, 2015. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan)

HALIFAX -

Two Halifax universities are joining a growing list of post-secondary schools in Atlantic Canada offering free tuition to some students who spent time in foster care growing up.

Dalhousie University and the University of King's College say the new tuition waiver programs will help remove financial barriers and encourage former youth in care to seek higher education.

Dalhousie says it will cover tuition for 10 students a year, while King's says it will offer two tuition waivers each year.

The announcements by the Halifax schools come as a growing number of universities and colleges in the four Atlantic provinces are eliminating tuition fees for current or former foster children, sometimes called government or Crown wards.

Last November, Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax became the first university in Atlantic Canada to launch a tuition waiver program specifically for former youth in care.

Memorial University of Newfoundland followed suit later that month, with the Nova Scotia Community College, Holland College in P.E.I. and the New Brunswick Community College launching similar programs earlier this year.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 7, 2021.