It’s not unusual for schools in the Middle East to separate students by gender. But an Ontario-based college is facing criticism for opening a men-only campus in Saudi Arabia.
Niagara College operates campuses in Niagara Falls, Welland and Niagara-on-the-Lake. Its new campus, called Niagara College-Taif, operates under Sharia Law, which imposes rules about the separation of men and women in classroom settings.
The goal of the Taif campus is to establish Niagara College’s presence in the Middle East while offering business, hospitality and tourism courses.
Student Administrative Council President Shane Malcolm told WBFO News the restriction at the Taif campus has sparked colliding views.
“We’ve been seeing a mixed bag of sorts of comments regarding the Saudi Arabia campus,” said Malcolm. “They vary from support and understanding that education is the doorway to societal change, and there’s also comments from people understanding that the culture of Saudi Arabia is very much different from the culture that it is here.”
Some students have expressed disappointment with the college’s decision to open a campus where they knew women would not be allowed to enroll.
“There’s been other opinions that the college should not be in a country where there’s segregation of males and females in terms of education,” said Malcolm. “It’s a very tricky situation.”
Malcolm believes international media coverage of the issue may have distorted some students’ perceptions. He’s urging them to wait for school officials to review the situation before making any judgment.
In the meantime, Malcolm encourages students to continue giving feedback to the Student Administrative Council, which plays an intermediary role.
“[The Council] will assist where needed in terms of leveraging [the college’s] voice and making sure the right thing is communicated to our students,” said Malcolm. “We’re doing our best here to make sure that students have the full story, and then are able to make informed decisions based on the information that’s available to them.”
Niagara College is not the only school in Ontario to be thrust into the international limelight. Ottawa's Algonquin College has also sparked controversy for opening a men-only campus in Saudi Arabia.
Government officials have publicly stated that they will continue to monitor the situation and listen to the criticism of concerned students before plotting the next move.