Universities in Canada

In Canada, the constitutional responsibility for universities rests with the provinces and territories. The decision to assign responsibility for universities to local legislatures was enacted as law in the British North America Act in 1867, later renamed the Constitution Act in 1982; it states: "in and for each Province, the Legislature may exclusively make laws in relation to Education."^[1] As a result of this constitutional agreement, a distinctive system of higher education has evolved in each province.^[2] An exception to provincial level university structure is the arrangement for the aboriginal peoples in Canada. As the constitutional responsibility for Aboriginal Peoples with Treaty Status rests with the federal government of Canada under the Constitution Act of 1982, the federal government is largely responsible for funding higher education opportunities for Aboriginal learners.^[3]