Applications from Ontario high school students up 10.5% at Laurentian University

Laurentian University has had a 10.5 per cent increase in applications from Ontario high school students this year,a sign the Sudbury, Ont., university is rebuilding, according to its interim president.

Laurentian reported 3,151 applications this year from those students, up from 2,851 in 2022. However, the numbers are still short of the 4,942 Ontario high school students who applied to Laurentian in January 2021.

Laurentian filed for insolvency on Feb. 1, 2021.That April,it cut 76 programs and 195 staff and faculty members lost their jobs.

On Nov. 28, 2022, Laurentian exited the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) restructuring process that followed its insolvency.

Laurentian's interim president, Sheila Embleton, said the recent uptick in applications from Ontario high school students is a positive sign.

"Remember also that there are fewer programs than there were several years ago, and so naturally there will be fewer students because of that," she said.

"But the rebuild has certainly begun and we're hoping that the trend continues."

Embleton said Laurentian's most recent March open house when prospective students and their parents visit the university campus had better numbers than in 2018 and 2019, before it filed for insolvency and cut programs.

"So I think that that signals that the future is getting better."

Embleton joined Laurentian on Jan. 1, 2023, and said while she wasn't there for the cuts to programs and staff, she could imagine the trauma it caused those employees and the university community.

"What I can say is in these last three months, I've really seen signs that give me confidence in the future of the university," she said.

Laurentian real estate

While Laurentian has exited its insolvency proceedings, it continues to review its real estate holdings to help pay its creditors.

In February, the university announced it would sell the president's house, which it purchased in 1965 for $130,000.

Last May, the provincial government said it would purchase $53.5-million of Laurentian real estate, although it hasn't shared more details since then.

Embleton said it's unlikely any of the core buildings on campus would be up for sale.

"I think in the end we'll see surprisingly little change because of some of the various leasing arrangements that we have now," she said.

"We may just see some of them the other way round and so on."