Newfoundland and Labrador has had the same growing pains as other provinces in developing its own form of education and now boasts a very strong, although relatively small, system. The direction of Newfoundland and Labrador's policy has evolved rapidly since the late 1990s, with increased funding, participation rates, accessibility and transferability. Many of the directives the government has been acting upon in the past 10 years have been a result of recommendations that stemmed from a 2005 white paper: Foundation for Success: White Paper on Public Post-Secondary Education. It set the course for furthering the strategic directives of the provincial post-secondary education sector. Some of its recommendations aimed to:

strengthen the base of the post-secondary education system improve the capacity of the university and college provide greater support services to students maintain adequate and stable funding for the students and the institutions improve accountability and collaboration within and between the post-secondary institutions

Timeline of higher education in the province 1823: Newfoundland School Society is founded to train teachers for the out-port communities 1893: Council of Higher Education (CHE) is formed to help grade 11 students matriculate to universities in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom 1911: Rhodes Scholarship Committee informs CHE of dissatisfaction with the performance of Newfoundlanders at Oxford 1925: Memorial University College is founded as a living memorial to those who died in active service during World War I 1933: Memorial University College and the Normal School are merged 1949: Memorial University College becomes Memorial University, a full degree granting institution, with the passing of the University Act of 1949 1963: District Vocational Schools open around the province 1967: Adult Upgrading Centre opens in Stephenville 1977: Bay St. George Community college is established from existing vocational school, Adult Upgrading Centre and Heavy Equipment School 1987: Two institutes and five community colleges are formed 1992: Five Colleges of Arts and Technology and Continuing Education are formed from the two institutes and five community colleges 1997: College of the North Atlantic is created from five colleges; it becomes the single community college in the province 2005: "Foundation for Success: White Paper on Public Post-Secondary Education" is published

History

Early policy

In the early 19th century, most schools in Newfoundland were one room school houses. The first Education Act in Newfoundland in 1836 inaugurated the existing elementary schools in its public education system, most of which had remained non-denominational. This was the first direct government involvement with education.

Despite this seemingly secular policy, anti-Catholic sentiment at the time resulted in hostility to Newfoundland's Roman Catholic population (which numbered half the colony) and to Catholic schools. This led to the Protestant-backed Education Act of 1843, which saw Catholics share education grants equally with Protestants. The Protestant grant was further divided between the Church of England and the Methodists and in the Education Act of 1876, the government transferred all its responsibility on education to the churches, thus setting up a denominational system of education. From this point on, religion, as well as the largest economic sector, fisheries, would be the driving factors behind Newfoundland's education system.

The next decades saw much infighting among many of Newfoundlanders around the allocation of grant money. Government revenue was based mainly on customs dues, so grant money would grow or shrink depending on the state of the economy. This resulted in schools which were smaller than needed and lacked sufficient equipment, and teachers who were both under-educated and underpaid. The Education Act of 1876 set up Superintendents for each of the denominational schools: Catholic, Church of England, and Methodist, which made up 90 percent of the population.Harris R.S. (1966). Changing patterns of higher education in Canada University of Toronto Press The situation only worsened as money was spent on building new schools rather than increasing teacher salaries, which continued to fall.

The roots of higher education

The colony began to turn its attention to higher education. In 1893 the Council of Higher Education (CHE) was formed and it crossed all denominations. The main purpose of the council was to test students from grades 6 through 11, who were deemed to have an academic disadvantage when trying to enter universities outside the colony. CHE established a set curriculum and guidelines for instruction. While CHE also encouraged students to enter university, there were no higher education institutions in Newfoundland. Thus, CHE formed many agreements with institutions in other provinces and countries to recognize CHE exams, which followed existing, accepted British exams, as prerequisites. Unfortunately, universities, especially Oxford, which was accepting Rhodes Scholars, were dissatisfied with the results of Newfoundlanders. Unlike students from Newfoundland, students from other Canadian provinces had already completed two years of higher education, and as a result, CHE began planning to set up an institution in St. John's which could provide the first two years of university to students.

By 1920, a full Department of Education was set up in Newfoundland (now a self-governing Dominion) and by 1925, Memorial University College (MUC) was founded. MUC offered two-year programs, continued to build relationships with universities elsewhere, and prepared Newfoundlanders for degree completion. Despite its links to British system (examinations were sent to the University of London for grading), MUC decided to use the course arrays and requirements of the Maritime universities, which therefore tied it to the Canadian Higher Education System. In 1933, MUC merged with the Normal School and assumed the teacher training program.

The road to confederation

While MUC received funding from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, it had to weather the Great Depression and the budget roller coaster that came with it. From 1934, after a stint of independence from Britain, Newfoundland increased expenditure in education to revitalize the system and improve conditions. Recovery was made, but by 1949, when the Dominion became a Province, it was in much the same condition as 25 years before. Facilities were still outdated and the terms of Confederation ensured that schools would remain run by denominational Boards of Education. On a positive note, the National Convention (1946–1948) endorsed the idea to build a degree granting institution in Newfoundland. As a result, MUC became the Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN) in 1949, and new money from the federal government began to arrive after 1957 in the form of equalization payments. The Newton Report (1952) and the Harris Report (1967) recommended limited government involvement over MUN and thus allowed it a certain level of autonomy.

Late 20th century changes

The concepts of vocational schools and community colleges emerged in the 1960s. The College of Fisheries, Navigation, Marine Engineering and Electronics opened in 1964 to teach fishery-related subjects. The Warren Commission in 1968 secularized the Department of Education and this marked the beginning of great changes in the education system.

Changes made in the 1970s and 1980s include the establishment of MUN's Regional College at Corner Brook (later renamed Sir Wilfred Grenfell College) and the introduction of grade 12. In 1987, two institutes (Cabot Institute and Fisher Technical College) and five community colleges (Avalon Community College, Eastern Community College, Central Newfoundland Community College, Labrador Community College and Western Community College) were formed.

In 1992, the College of Fisheries, Navigation, Marine Engineering and Electronics became the Marine Institute of MUN[Bindon, K. and Wilson, P. (1997). Newfoundland: More Canadian Than British, But Longer Getting There. Glen A. Jones, (Ed.). New York: Garland Publishing, Inc.] and in 1997 the Community Colleges amalgamated into the College of the North Atlantic.

Structure Each province in Canada is responsible for its higher education. Newfoundland and Labrador has a small but effective system of higher education institutions. Its system is also unique in Canada as it is the only system with one university and one college. Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN)Memorial University. (n.d.). Home page. Retrieved on May 15, 2008 is categorized as a comprehensive, degree-granting university, and the College of the North Atlantic (CNA) provides diverse technical and career-oriented certificates, apprenticeship, degree and diploma programmes with university-level transfer courses. The Fisheries and Marine Institute (MI)The Fisheries and Marine Institute. (n.d.). Home page. Retrieved on May 6, 2008 is linked to MUN and provides fisheries and marine technology training. Several health-related programs are also offered through regional health authorities. There are also 25 provincially registered private training institutions.

Main laws/decrees governing higher education

Memorial University Act (amended 1991) - Memorial University of NewfoundlandMemorial University Act, R.S.N.L. 1990, c. M-7. Retrieved on May 2, 2008 College Act 1996 - College of the North AtlanticCollege Act, 1996, S.N. L. 1996, c. C-22.1. Retrieved on April 28, 2008 Private Training Institutions Act 1997 - private training institutionsPrivate Training Institutions Act, R.S.N.L. 1990, c. P-25. Retrieved on May 7, 2008 The Degree Granting Act 1998 - Memorial University of NewfoundlandDegree Granting Act, R.S.N.L. 1990, c. D-5. Retrieved on May 10, 2008 Apprenticeship and Certification Act 1999 - apprenticeship programs of the skilled tradesApprenticeship and Certification Act, S.N.L. 1999, c. A-12.1. Retrieved on May 2, 2008

Memorial University of Newfoundland Established in 1925 as a two-year university preparation school and a living memorial to the Newfoundlanders who died in active service during World War I, Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN) was granted full degree-granting status in 1949 and now has approximately 18,000 students, 1000 faculty members and 1,500 support staff. Approximately 9% of its student body are international students, and 18% from other Canadian provinces, such as Nova Scotia. With four campuses across the province, it is the largest institution in the area. More than 100 undergraduate and graduate degrees are offered throughout six faculties (arts, business, education, medicine, engineering and applied science, science), five schools (music, human kinetics and recreation, nursing, pharmacy, social work) and one institute (Marine Institute).

The government deals directly with the university on budgetary and policy matters; however, the Board of Regents has a wide latitude in most operational areas and is responsible for the management, administration, and control of the property, revenue, business and affairs of the university.

College of the North Atlantic