A submission to BC’s Post-Secondary Review — and an invitation to collaborate globally.
Dear Colleagues, Leaders, Educators, and Everyone Who Cares About Students,
Something extraordinary is happening in British Columbia right now.
The provincial government has launched a sweeping review of its entire public post-secondary system. The reason is stark: 20 of 25 institutions are forecasting deficits. Federal policy changes have caused abrupt revenue losses. Buildings sit half-empty. Programs run with low enrollment. Institutions compete with each other for a shrinking pool of students.
And the government has been honest about one thing: no large injection of new funding is coming.
The status quo cannot continue. Those are not my words. Those are the words of the Terms of Reference.
I’ve Spent 20 Years Preparing for This Moment
I submitted a detailed response to this review because I believe the solutions already exist. They are not theoretical. They have been tested in real classrooms, with real students, at five Canadian universities, over two decades.
Here is what I’ve built:
321 courses across 6 specialized volumes covering every dimension of social work education — ready for any institution to adopt, customize, and deliver. Instead of 25 universities each reinventing the same introductory courses, one high-quality version can serve all of them.
60 specializations aligned to workforce needs producing graduates who earn $50,000+ starting salaries with premiums of $5,000 to $27,000 over generalist practitioners.
Fully designed BSW and MSW cohorts following the On/Off-the-Ground (GRACE) model. These are not concepts on paper. I have designed complete Bachelor of Social Work and Master of Social Work programs built around the GRACE framework, with structured cohorts that move through the curriculum together using flexible delivery modes. Students learn online, gather for intensive in-person sessions, complete field placements in their home communities, and graduate without ever having to leave the people and places they are meant to serve. These cohorts are designed, documented, and ready for any institution willing to launch them.
An On/Off-the-Ground delivery model with multiple flexible modes that reach students wherever they are — in cities, in small towns, in remote communities. Instead of asking students to uproot their lives and move to a campus, the campus comes to them.
High-enrollment interdisciplinary courses that regularly attracted 250–300 students at the University of Manitoba, generating $125,000–$175,000 per section. These courses can launch within a single academic term.
Community Advisory Boards that connect curriculum directly to employers, practitioners, and community needs — so programs stay relevant and graduates stay employed.
A zero-sum budget model that demonstrates how programs achieve financial sustainability without relying on new government funding — through right-sized cohorts, cross-subsidization, hybrid delivery, and shared curriculum.
This Is Not Just a British Columbia Problem
If you’re reading this from Ontario, Alberta, Nova Scotia, or Saskatchewan — you’re facing the same pressures. If you’re reading this from the United States, the UK, Australia, or Europe — you recognize this story. If you’re reading this from Africa, South America, or South Asia — the challenge of making quality education accessible is even more urgent.
Everywhere in the world, the same questions echo through leadership meetings and planning sessions:
- How do we serve more students with fewer resources?
- How do we stop duplicating effort and start collaborating?
- How do we reach learners who live far from a campus?
- How do we prove that education leads to employment?
- How do we make this sustainable without pricing students out?
I have answers to these questions. They are tested. They are documented. They are ready.
The GRACE Model: Complete Programs, Not Just Ideas
I want to be clear about what I mean by “ready.”
I have not simply written a position paper. I have designed complete degree programs — BSW and MSW cohorts — built on the GRACE framework and the On/Off-the-Ground delivery model. Every course is mapped. Every field placement is structured. Every cohort progression is planned.
A student in a remote community in Northern British Columbia, or rural Manitoba, or a small town in Ukraine, or a township in South Africa could enroll in one of these cohorts and complete a professional social work degree without leaving their community. They would learn alongside a cohort of peers. They would have intensive in-person gatherings. They would complete supervised practica with local organizations. And they would graduate with a credential that connects directly to employment.
This is what accessible education looks like when someone actually designs it.
An Invitation to Collaborate
I am writing this not just as a submission to a provincial review. I am writing this as an open invitation.
I am ready to collaborate with any English-speaking university in the world that is willing to reimagine how education is delivered. Any institution. Any country. Any discipline that can benefit from these frameworks.
The only requirement is that we share one belief:
Every student who is willing to learn deserves the chance to do so.
Not just students who can afford to move to a city. Not just students who fit the traditional 18-to-22-year-old mold. Not just students who already have connections and resources. Every student. Everywhere.
If you lead a university and wonder how to keep your institution solvent while expanding access — I want to hear from you.
If you oversee academic programs and are looking for innovative delivery models that actually work — I want to hear from you.
If you are responsible for aligning programs with labour market needs and community priorities — I want to hear from you.
If you are a faculty member tired of building courses from scratch when proven frameworks already exist — I want to hear from you.
If you shape education policy and are searching for models that deliver results at scale — I want to hear from you.
If you are a student who has ever been told that education is not for you, that your community is too remote, that your circumstances are too complicated — I especially want to hear from you.
What I Am Offering
This is not a sales pitch. This is a commitment.
- I am prepared to share curriculum with institutions that want to reduce duplication and improve quality
- I am prepared to launch BSW and MSW cohorts using the GRACE On/Off-the-Ground model at any partner institution
- I am prepared to pilot flexible delivery at any institution ready to reach underserved learners
- I am prepared to consult on financial sustainability for programs facing budget pressures
- I am prepared to present to leadership teams, boards, and senates anywhere in the world
- I am prepared to co-develop new specializations aligned to your region’s workforce needs
Twenty years of work. Five universities. Seven thousand students. Complete BSW and MSW programs designed and ready. Frameworks that produce graduates earning $50,000+ starting salaries and contributing over $250 million annually to the economy.
This work is too important to sit on one campus.
Share This Widely
If this resonates with you, I have one request: share it.
Share it with your colleagues. Share it with leaders at other institutions. Share it with people who shape education policy. Share it internationally. Share it with anyone who has ever looked at the state of post-secondary education and thought: there has to be a better way.
There is. And it’s ready.
Read the full submission: https://krasun.ca/bc-review/
The crisis is real, but the solutions exist. They have been tested over 20 years with 7,000+ students. They are ready for implementation.
Let’s build something together.
Dr. Oleksandr (Sasha) Kondrashov (he/він)
Founder, DROKACADEMY
Tenured Associate Professor in Social Work | Thompson Rivers University
King Charles Coronation Medal Recipient | Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torchbearer
IFSW Life Friend Member | IASSW Life Member
sasha@drokacademy.ca | drokacademy.ca
I acknowledge my birthplace in Lviv, Ukraine, and my Canadian homes across Treaty 1 (Winnipeg), Mi’kma’ki (Halifax), and Secwepemcúlucw (Kamloops).
Leave a Reply