Defying Higher Education Borders with Migrant Students in Canada

Join us for a special event celebrating the launch of Defying Higher Education Borders with Migrant Students in Canada by Paloma E. Villegas and Tanya Aberman, alongside the achievements of the first cohort of graduates from the Sanctuary Scholars program.

As part of a day of celebrations marking the research, leadership, and collective work that have emerged through Sanctuary Scholars, this event brings together scholarship and lived experience to reflect on what it means to challenge the bordering practices of higher education. In conversation with moderator Rebecca Murray (University of Sheffield), Villegas and Aberman will discuss how migrant students with precarious immigration status have resisted exclusion, built supportive learning communities, and reimagined the university as a site of sanctuary, struggle, and possibility.

We will also celebrate the first graduating cohort of the Sanctuary Scholars program! Their graduation marks not only individual achievement, but a broader challenge to the bordering practices that so often constrain access to higher education for students with precarious immigration status.

Location + Time

When: Wednesday, April 29th, 12:00pm - 1:30pm (11:30am - doors open and food served)

Where: 288 Church Street, (DCC building), room 707/709

Access: ASL interpretation. This is a mask-mandatory event. Please wear a mask when not eating, and we will have surgical masks available. For questions about access, please email eliza.chandler@torontomu.ca

Mutual Aid

In the spirit of community care and mutual aid, The Sanctuary Students Support & Solidarity Collective, commonly known as the S4 Collective is looking for donations to be used for scholarship. The S4 Collective supports students with precarious or non-formal immigration status in accessing education. Many face barriers like high international fees and ineligibility for financial aid, making post-secondary pathways difficult.

They are raising $10,000 to fund scholarships and sustain their work. Your support helps make education more equitable and accessible for all.

Donate and learn more here (external link) .