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To help support OPSEU/SEFPO members and their families, the union awards tens of thousands of dollars in scholarships every year.
There are nine different scholarships – some for members themselves, and some for the children and dependants of members.
Scholarship applications are now open for the 2025/26 school year — the application deadline for all all scholarships is July 31, 2025.
2025 scholarships for members’ dependants
$1,000 Curt Bishop Scholarship for dependants
OPSEU offers an annual scholarship of $1,000 in memory of Curt Bishop, a long-time union health and safety activist who passed away on June 30, 2008.
As a member of the Corrections division, Local 678 (Algoma Treatment and Remand Centre), Curt understood that improvements in the workplace health and safety come only through worker action and effort. For more than two decades, Curt dedicated himself at both the local and provincial levels to the struggles of OPSEU/SEFPO members to achieve safer and healthier workplaces.
Who can apply
Open to dependants of OPSEU/SEFPO members in good standing who are studying at a publicly-funded, publicly-run post-secondary institution in Ontario in the 2025/26 school year.
Applications due July 31, 2025. Apply now
$1,000 Fred Upshaw Scholarship for dependants of Black or racialized members
This standing scholarship of $1,000 is offered annually in honour of Fred Upshaw, OPSEU/SEFPO President from 1990-1995. It is open to dependants of Black and other racialized OPSEU/SEFPO members.
Upshaw was a registered nurse at the Whitby Psychiatric Hospital and a member of OPSEU/SEFPO, Local 331. A fervent human rights activist to the core, Upshaw championed employment equity during his time as president of the union. This annual scholarship is to commemorate Fred’s tireless advocacy on behalf of working people and social justice for all.
Who can apply
Open to dependants of Black and other racialized OPSEU/SEFPO members in good standing who are pursuing studies in labour relations and/or social justice and human rights, at a publicly-funded, publicly-run post-secondary institution in Ontario, in the 2025/26 school year.
Applications due July 31, 2025. Apply now
$1,500 Carol McGregor Scholarship for dependants of members with a visible or invisible disability
OPSEU/SEFPO offers an annual scholarship of $1,500 in the memory of Carol McGregor, a longtime union activist on disability rights issues, who died in 2006.
Who can apply: Open to dependants of OPSEU/SEFPO members in good standing who have a visible or invisible disability and are pursuing post-secondary education at a publicly funded university, community college or trades program in Ontario, in the 2025/26 school year.
Who can apply
Open to dependants of OPSEU/SEFPO members in good standing who have a visible or invisible disability and are pursuing post-secondary education at a publicly funded university, community college or trades program in Ontario, in the 2025/26 school year.
Applications due July 31, 2025. Apply now
$1,000 Amy Stiles Scholarship for dependants of contract faculty
This standing annual scholarship of $1,000 was created in 2019 in honour of Amy Stiles, her legacy as a union activist, and the work that she did on behalf of her local, her division and her union.
Amy was a nursing faculty member at Conestoga, where she worked as the coordinator for the Personal Support Worker program at Riverside Glen in Guelph, and where she conducted a “Living Classroom” with on-site learning for her students.
In 2017, while returning home from a rally at Queen’s Park in support of striking college faculty, Amy was tragically killed in a car accident.
Who can apply
This scholarship is open to the dependants of any contract faculty who is an OPSEU/SEFPO member in good standing and who is confirmed as having worked on a contract at one of Ontario’s public colleges within the six months prior to the application deadline.
Applications due July 31, 2025. Apply now
$1,000 Global Solidarity Scholarship for dependants
OPSEU/SEFPO offers up to ten scholarships annually of $1,000 each to support our goals of social justice and global solidarity for the working class.
OPSEU/SEFPO has made the fight against HIV/AIDS a top priority in our work towards a healthier international community by adopting the Live and Let Live Fund as part of our responsibility as a trade union. Therefore, HIV/AIDS and international worker solidarity across borders are the foundation of these OPSEU/SEFPO scholarships.
Who can apply
Open to dependants of OPSEU/SEFPO members in good standing who are studying at a publicly funded, recognized Canadian university or college in the 2025/26 school year.
Applications due July 31, 2025. Apply now
Hospital Professionals Division Scholarship for dependants
The Hospital Professionals Division offers up to seven scholarship (one per region) annually to students who are entering professions within the HPD. More information about HPD.
Who can apply
Open to OPSEU/SEFPO members in good standing or their dependants who are confirmed as enrolled in a Hospital Professionals program at a publicly funded, recognized Canadian university or college in the 2025/26 school year.
Applications due July 31, 2025. Apply now
2025 scholarships for members
$1,000 Continuing Education Scholarship for members
OPSEU/SEFPO’s Provincial Young Workers Committee (PYC) is proud to present the annual OPSEU/SEFPO Continuing Education Scholarship for members of all ages! Members in good standing who are looking to continue their education at any post-secondary program are eligible to apply for this $1,000 scholarship, which is offered annually and in each region.
Who can apply
This scholarship is open to any OPSEU/SEFPO member in good standing. The applicant must be currently enrolled in a publicly funded post-secondary institution in Ontario for the 2025/26 school year.
Applications due July 31, 2025. Apply now
Hospital Professionals Division Scholarship for members
The Hospital Professionals Division offers up to seven scholarship (one per region) annually to students who are entering professions within the HPD. More information about HPD.
Who can apply: Open to OPSEU/SEFPO members in good standing or their dependants who are confirmed as enrolled in a Hospital Professionals program at a publicly funded, recognized Canadian university or college in the 2025/26 school year.
Applications due July 31, 2025. Apply now
$1,000 Karen Millar Memorial Scholarship for members studying social services
This standing annual scholarship of $1000 was created in 2020 in honour of Karen Millar, Local 448. Karen was a valued and respected Residential Counsellor at a Kemptville group home operated by Pathways to Independence, and was the victim of a homicide in her workplace.
Who can apply Open to dependants of OPSEU/SEFPO members in good standing who are enrolled in a Social Services program at a Canadian college or university in the 2025/26 school year.
Applications due July 31, 2025. Apply now
$1,000 Larry Cripps Scholarship for members studying policing, law, security or corrections
The OPSEU/SEFPO executive board unanimously approved an annual bursary/scholarship of $1,000 to be awarded in the memory of Brother Larry Cripps, a Correctional Officer and long-time union activist who died in 2004.
Who can apply: Open to dependants of OPSEU/SEFPO members in good standing who are confirmed as enrolled in either a Police Foundations Course or a Law and Security/Corrections course at a publicly-funded, recognized Canadian university or college in the 2025/26 school year.
Applications due July 31, 2025. Apply now
Application for 2025 scholarships
The deadline for all 2025 scholarship applications is July 31, 2025.
The 2025 scholarships are for use during the 2025/26 school year and will be issued by Nov. 30, 2025
Applicants must provide confirmation of enrollment to a publicly-funded university, college or trades program. This confirmation must be on official letterhead, provided by the enrollment services division of your school.
There are two ways to apply:
- By email: Download and complete the appropriate fillable PDF application form. Completed PDFs — along with enrolment confirmation and any photos, videos, or audio files – must be emailed to [email protected] by July 31, 2025.
- By mail: Download and complete the appropriate fillable PDF application form. Print and complete the PDF and mail it — along with enrolment confirmation and any photos or any other pieces of art — to OPSEU/SEFPO Continuing Education Scholarship Fund c/o OPSEU/SEFPO Education and Organizing Unit, 100 Lesmill Road Toronto, Ontario M3B 3P8
Applications are reviewed and marked by an independent adjudicator. Submission materials will not be returned to applicants.
For more information about OPSEU/SEFPO Scholarships, contact the Education and Organizing Unit, 1-800-268-7376 ext. 3371, or [email protected].
To fill out any of these forms, you’ll need to:
- Your local number
- Your OPSEU/SEFPO member number
- Confirmation of enrolment on the school’s letterhead
- Any required summaries and/or essays, and upload any required photos, videos, or audio files