Back in 2009 Craig Ellerman was staying at the downtown Victoria Salvation Army Men’s Shelter.
“I wasn’t in too good a state of mind, and I saw a poster up on the bulletin board advertising information sessions for the Uni 101 program,” he said.
“I looked at it, and at first I thought maybe this is a hoax. It said free tuition, no grades, and it looked like an opportunity just to learn for learning’s sake.”
15 years later, Ellerman is now on staff with the program. Uni 101 is a program at the University of Victoria that provides academic courses to people whose economic and social circumstances normally pose obstacles to university education.
Ellerman says he was nervous about first enrolling in the program, but found it was a very accepting, inclusive environment.
Uni 101 coordinator Stephanie Sweetnam says acknowledging, valuing, and respecting the knowledge that Uni 101 students come through the door with is a big part of the program.
“I would be happy if students walked away with a feeling of, not only my experience matters, but, like, ‘oh, I’m really smart and I know a lot of things and I asked really good questions and I’m so curious,'” she said.
Uni 101 is currently taking applications for the fall. The application process is open through the end of August.
Ellerman, Sweetnam, and Uni 101 program assistant Chloe Wiesenthal spoke with People First Radio about the program
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