Ontario’s ministry of colleges and universities has issued a restraining order against Randolph College of Performing Arts, a well known career college in Toronto’s west end, to cease its operations.
On Aug. 31, the Ministry of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security (MCURES) issued the order after the school continued operating as a career college and offering “unapproved vocational programs.”
Randolph College’s accreditation as a career college with the province expired on Jan. 31 but the institution continued to operating and collecting tuition fees from students, according to the ministry’s order. The school lost its accreditation after it failed to submit a “complete application” to be reregistered as a career college, the provincial labour ministry said.
“The business must immediately cease all activities that constitute operating a career college, including recruiting or enrolling students in vocational programs, delivering or offering vocational programs and charging or collecting tuition or other fees in respect of vocational programs,” the ministry’s order reads.
The Star reached out to the college Tuesday with a request for comment, but did not hear back by press time.
Randolph College’s operations first ceased on Aug. 28 with “an orderly wind-down of remaining administrative, student, employment and regulatory obligations,” Randolph College’s board of directors said in an Aug. 30 email to faculty and staff.
The board said in its email, which the Star obtained, that the school’s career college registration expired on Feb. 1 and it had been “pursuing new registration.”
“The required approval has not been obtained,” the email said. “The board determined that it would not be prudent or responsible to continue the college program without the required regulatory approval.”
Students left in limbo
Randolph College offered an elite performing arts program for Toronto’s theatre community and among its alumni are notable actors, choreographers and performers, such as director Sergio Trujillo, who has worked on Broadway, and Veronika Slowikowska, part of the cast of Saturday Night Live.
Since Randolph’s registration expired earlier this year, the school has been required to communicate with enrolled students about the school’s lack of accreditation, said Michel Figueredo, director of communications to Ontario’s Minister of Labour David Piccini, in an email statement to the Star.
For students like Brooklyn Chenard, 21, who was going to start her fourth term at Randolph College this fall, the news has been devastating. She said it was her dream to work in musical theatre ever since she was a kid.
When she heard of the college’s accreditation issues and later, the restraining order, Chenard said she felt “shocked.” Suddenly, she said she was forced to find another theatre school that would be a good fit for her in a matter of days.
“I was sobbing really hard,” she said. “I lost something that was so important to me and that I loved so much.”
Employees allege they haven’t been paid in months
Students are not the only ones affected by the college’s accreditation issue.
Three former employees the Star spoke with said they’re still waiting for their paycheques to come in and have unsuccessfully tried to reach the college administration.
“This is not how you treat anyone in business,” said Sarah Jean Hodkinson, a former manager who oversaw the Randolph Kids program before she left in April 2026 after not receiving six weeks of pay. By late August, Hodkinson said she is still owed just under $5,000.
When Hodkinson and other employees sought out the school’s directors to try to get some answers, she said all her calls, emails and text messages were ignored. Hodkinson, who is a Randolph College graduate, said her mental health took a toll during this period.
“It felt like a sinking ship and we couldn’t find the captain.”
O’neil Edwards, who was previously listed as the college’s executive director, told the Star he always believed the college intended to pay faculty, staff and contractors. He said he had nothing to do with the board’s financial decisions.
“I haven’t been with the school in a practical sense for a very long time,” Edwards said, but added that he stayed on in a “supportive role” to help employees with these outstanding payment issues. He did not elaborate how long that role lasted or when his official capacity with the school ended.
But employers still has a responsibility to its workers to be paid “in full and on time,” said Figueredo.
“Any failure to comply with the requirements under the Ontario Career Colleges Act and the Employment Standards Act is unacceptable and will be met with enforcement action to protect hard workers and students,” he said.
In its Aug. 30 email to faculty and staff, the college’s board of directors said it recognized there were still “outstanding amounts owing to some members of our faculty and staff, including individuals who worked with Randolph Kids during the summer.”
“Further information regarding the process and timing will be communicated as it is confirmed,” the board said. “We do not want to make commitments today about outcomes or timelines that cannot yet be confirmed.”
