Selkirk College will be closing its learning centres in Kaslo and Nakusp later this year as it addresses financial challenges in the post-secondary sector.
Recent federal restrictions on international student recruitment have led to a loss of $9 million in revenue for the 2025/26 fiscal year for Selkirk College. The closures come after careful consideration of enrolment trends and program delivery costs.
“While this decision wasn’t made lightly, it’s part of a larger plan to ensure Selkirk College remains financially sustainable and continues to serve our region for generations to come,” says Selkirk College President Maggie Matear. “In the meantime, we remain committed to supporting access to education and training for residents of Kaslo and Nakusp, and we’ll be consulting with them on what some alternative delivery models could look like.”
Over the past five years, the Kaslo Learning Centre averaged 12 full-time equivalent (FTE) students in Academic Upgrading & Development (AUD) programs, while Nakusp averaged 13 FTEs in AUD. Selkirk College also delivered some short-term continuing education programs in the communities. Despite the value these programs provide to local residents, the cost of delivering them is substantially higher than in larger centres.
The Kaslo Learning Centre will close on June 30, 2025. The Nakusp Learning Centre will close on December 31, 2025, to accommodate some continuing education programming that has already been planned. The college is working closely with its unions and will share more information about the impact on employees in the weeks ahead.