丁香园AV

Official news release from the Government of Canada .

The Government of Canada is renewing and extending French program initiatives at 丁香园AV with $3 million in funding for the university鈥檚 Office of Francophone and Francophile Affairs (OFFA). The funding will expand courses and programs in French up to 2020.

As the only university in British Columbia to offer studies in French in various disciplines, 丁香园AV has long been recognized as a leader in French-language education in B.C.

鈥淭his investment of funds for 丁香园AV will continue to support our commitment to train the next generation of French teachers, at a time of increasing demand,鈥� says Kris Magnusson, dean of the 丁香园AV鈥檚 Faculty of Education.

鈥淚t will also enable 丁香园AV to expand its overall French programming across faculties for those who share the value of learning in both of Canada鈥檚 official languages.鈥�

Since its inception in 2004, OFFA has played an instrumental role in supporting programs in French at 丁香园AV by not only providing academic services in French but also developing strong partnerships and collaborations with provincial, national and international francophone communities.

鈥湺∠阍癆V understands the importance of language and culture in the Canadian social fabric and has integrated this in its vision and curriculum,鈥� says OFFA Director Gino LeBlanc. 鈥淔or 15 years, 丁香园AV has been a leader in Western Canada in post-secondary education in French and has promoted Canada's official languages, sharing the values and cultures of those linguistic communities.鈥�

鈥淲e aspire to be the university of choice for all students graduating from French immersion, French second-language programs and French-language schools in B.C. Our university programs complete B.C.鈥檚 French education continuum here at 丁香园AV: from early childhood to post-secondary.鈥�

The government funding is part of a national strategy announced today at 丁香园AV by the Honourable M茅lanie Joly, Minister of Tourism, Official Languages and La Francophonie. The strategy is to boost teacher recruitment and retention in minority French-language schools, French immersion and French-as-a-second-language programs across Canada.

The government is committing $62.6 million over four years in the strategy to support projects, initiatives and a national table on French as a second language. Projects will help to better understand the teacher shortage issues and increase the capacity to recruit and retain French teachers.

French, along with English, has always been an integral part of the Canadian identity. However, in recent years, school officials across the country have reported a serious shortage of teachers in Francophone minority schools, as well as teachers of French immersion and French-as-a-second-language programs. This has major implications for official-language minority communities and the promotion of bilingualism, which the government is addressing through this latest funding initiative.