'Pretty devastating': Alberta charities cut language classes after Ottawa slashes funding

Newcomers settling in Calgary face massive wait times to access free English classes, ranging up to a year, according to the Centre for Newcomers.

Now, due to federal funding cuts, the non-profit said those wait times could get even longer.

Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has cut funding for some organizations offering Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC) as Ottawa plans to start reducing immigration levels.

LINC classes are fully federally funded classes that help new arrivals learn to read, write, listen and speak in English. 

Because of the funding change, the Centre for Newcomers has made cuts to its popular LINC classes — even though around 900 people are on a waitlist.

"I think it's pretty shocking news," said Charlie Wang, the interim CEO at the Centre for Newcomers. He spoke to CBC host Jenny Howe for this week's episode of This Is Calgary.

"Since the Afghan and then Ukrainian [crises], the waiting list for language programs has been fairly long," Wang said.

Bow Valley College, Maple Leaf Academy and Lethbridge Polytechnic have also announced they're scrapping their popular LINC classes.

Across the city, Immigrant Services Calgary says 6,199 new Calgarians were waiting for LINC classes as of April 2.

Language classes critical, say student, English teacher 

Marite Rojas, who grew up in Bolivia, moved to Calgary just over two years ago. She waited for about a year before she got a spot in a LINC classroom.

"I [didn't] have a choice," she told Howe. "I tried to find another school where you had to pay, but if you don't work, [it's] expensive."

"If you cannot communicate with people … you are [isolated] for everything," she said. "You cannot go to the doctor and understand what the doctor said, you cannot open a bank account and read the contracts."

Rojas has passed some LINC classes but plans to continue studying English with the goal of eventually attending a post-secondary school.

Until the start of April, Maple Leaf Academy offered the classes for free, but the loss of government funding forced the school to shut down its LINC program. 

"It's been pretty devastating. I'm at the school right now, but it's quite empty and there are fewer teachers, way fewer students," said Kevin Simpson, an instructor and e-learning specialist at Maple Leaf Academy in downtown Calgary. 

Simpson said some former students arrived in Calgary planning to attend these classes, as part of their long-term plan for building a new life in Canada.

"You're teaching them, you're with them every day. You form relationships with people and then you give them this news and you can just see how much it affects them," he said. 

"Language proficiency is pretty necessary for success in this society. And they are faced with a huge challenge that they, a month ago, didn't face."

This is Calgary15:16Take a number! Free English language classes for new Calgarians can’t meet demand

Newcomers in Calgary count on free language classes provided by the federal government to give them language tools to make the city home. But often they're stuck waiting months for a chance to learn. And with immigration targets being lowered, the funding taps for these classes are turning off.

In a statement, an IRCC spokesperson said funding to support newcomer settlement needs is up 4.2 per cent in 2024-25 from the previous fiscal year. 

The funding available for supports, like LINC classes, depends on how many newcomers are expected to arrive in Canada. 

"Since, according to the Immigration Levels Plan, fewer newcomers are expected in 2025-2027, available resources have been reduced to match this decrease, which has resulted in a reduction in service providers," the IRCC spokesperson said.

Next year, the annual number of newcomers issued permanent resident status will go from 500,000 to 395,000, then to 380,000 in 2026 and 365,000 in 2027.

Calgary's Immigrant Education Society received an additional $450,000 in February to expand its free English classes programming — enough to accommodate five extra classes and an additional 125 students. 

In an email, the non-profit said the funding is meant to bridge the gap created by the loss of other LINC programs in the city, but it "doesn't really make a dent considering the long wait times."

The Immigrant Education Society has around 2,500 new Calgarians on its waitlist. It can take upward of a year to access their classes, the charity said.