By Grace Henkel
The jewelry arts and gemmology programs at George Brown College (GBC) have long held a hopeful place in the back of Veronica Schmeiser’s mind. The second-year creative industries student at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), who is looking to transfer into fashion, has experimented with making her own jewelry since around the age of eight.
Schmeiser had been considering taking a formal certification in jewelry design to grow her skills into a “side hustle,” or potentially pursue the craft as a full-time career. Until recently, she planned on applying to the one-year certificate program offered at GBC in jewelry and gemmology upon the completion of her bachelor’s degree.
However, Schmeiser’s plans changed after finding out that three out of four of GBC’s jewelry and gemmology programs are to be suspended as of Fall 2025, with only one more intake of new students set to take place in September 2025 for the one-year jewelry essentials program.
“It’s kind of like a slap in the face, I think, because it doesn’t feel like there’s a lot of programs that offer such niche ‘making’ skills,” said Schmeiser.
According to an Instagram post by Paul McClure, an artist and professor at the George Brown College School of Fashion and Jewellery, the jewelry and gemmology program has been running for over 55 years and is the largest in North America with 250 full-time students.
Schmeiser said, “It’s something that I definitely relied on being there for me. And it kind of detracts my whole plan that I’ve been thinking about for years now so it definitely makes me feel a little uncertain about where I would go next after my degree.”
Martha Glenny, a 1975 graduate of the program who returned to GBC as a professor and is now retired, was disappointed by the suspension but said it didn’t come as a surprise.
“It’s been decades in the making because there’s been chronic underfunding by the provincial government,” said Glenny, noting that “the easy targets are the programs that are costly to run.”
The recent cap on international student enrolment by the federal government has also been a focal point of concern as noted by GBC administration. In addition to heavy reliance on international student tuition, many post-secondary institutions have also come to depend upon part-time staff to run their programs, Glenny explained.
Part-time instructors in the jewelry program are often recent graduates who are launching their own businesses while working in the industry.
“They’re absolutely essential,” said Glenny. During a virtual interview with The Eyeopener, the former professor wore a yellow pin with bold black lettering that read, “Save GBC Jewellery.” As previously reported by CBC News, students gathered on March 19 on the college’s campus to protest the suspensions with yellow flags and pins bearing that same message.
On social media, backlash against the suspensions has also gained traction, with “#savegbcjewellery” circulating on Facebook and Instagram.
“The faculty and the students are very energized,” said Glenny. “I don’t think they’re going to let this go.”
In an email to industry professionals, alumni and others connected to the program, interim dean of the Centre for Arts, Design, & Information Technology Ana Rita Morais wrote, as verified by The Eye: “The Jewellery and Gemmology programs at George Brown College are currently facing critical evaluations due to substantial financial pressures exacerbated by recent changes in international student policy and subsequent impacts on our budget.”
“While we have made the difficult decision not to run intakes for Fall 2025, I want to clarify that these programs have not been suspended or closed indefinitely,” the statement also read.
“I don’t think they’re going to let this go”
In Morais’ message, an invitation was extended to recipients for a roundtable discussion this June to “collaboratively identify viable pathways and innovative approaches to maintain the high standards of education and training that GBC is known for, particularly in our Jewellery and Gemmology programs.”
Isabel Gertler, a 2018 graduate of the jewelry arts program who now works at the Toronto-based Fair Trade Jewelry Co., noted that GBC jewelry graduates are part of a “close-knit community” and had heard rumours leading up to the suspension from fellow alumni and colleagues. She was one of the recipients of the above message from the interim dean.
“I was truly surprised. I didn’t think it was going to happen because it’s such a robust program,” said Gertler, of the suspension. “I was just thinking that this is such a huge loss for our industry.”
While the administration cited low enrolment as the primary reason for the suspensions, Gertler has witnessed the opposite, saying GBC jewelry has long been “a very popular, very well-attended program.”
Gertler emphasized that “business is booming” at Fair Trade Jewelry Co.
“There is still an appetite for custom-made, locally made jewelry,” she said, adding that there’s a “symbiotic relationship between the program and the local industry.”
While the majority of Canada’s jewelry making is concentrated in Toronto, as noted in a report by Industry, Science, and Technology Canada, Gertler said the city won’t be the only place where the closures will reverberate. Many of Gertler’s former classmates have gone on to careers across Canada, including in the Prairie Provinces and on the West Coast. The Vancouver Metal Arts Association, an artist-run non-profit society that promotes workshops, artist lectures and exhibitions for the art jewelry and metalsmith communities in Vancouver, recently published a call to action to restore the GBC jewelry and gemmology programs.
The sweeping tariffs launched by the Trump administration in the United States have bolstered support for all things local and Canadian-made, including jewelry.
“Especially right now, when there’s this resurgence or this big interest in buying Canadian, buying Canadian products, supporting Canadian companies, there’s a real advantage to having this industry here at home,” said Gertler.
“But if there’s no training for it, then that’s just not sustainable. And this industry will potentially wither and go away,” she said.
Leif Benner, a master goldsmith, jeweller and graduate of GBC’s three-year jewelry arts program, has watched firsthand as opportunities for prospective students disappear. Benner’s son, who is in grade 12, had planned to enrol in the very same three-year program this fall.
Now, however, his plans have had to drastically change. Benner suggested his son enrol in the only program still being offered—a one-year certificate—and then work as an apprentice in Benner’s studio.
Still, Benner said the situation isn’t ideal. Having worked actively in Toronto’s jewelry community as a mentor and artist fellow at Harbourfront Centre, he says the pared-down program simply won’t be the same.
“I really, really wanted [my son] to have the experience of George Brown, because it’s so thorough and it’s such an enriching experience for a young person,” said Benner.
“The sheer volume of technical knowledge it takes to make jewelry, it really takes three years,” he added.
Benner, Glenny and Gertler have all written numerous letters and emails to faculty, administration, as well as members of provincial parliament. Current students began a petition to advocate for the restoration of the program.
“At the end of the day, what we have to do is fight for it”
Schmeiser has seen the jewelry discipline emerge through creative circles at TMU, whether with hobbyists or experienced craftspeople. Technical skills like soldering, goldsmithing, gem-setting and more have piqued her interest and her career hopes.
The loss of an opportunity to learn at GBC jewelry has left her feeling shut out of that world. “It kind of makes me feel like I have FOMO [a fear of missing out] because I don’t have access to those tools or that education,” she said.
“Losing that tradition is going to be sad,” said Benner of the program. Still, he was reassured by the response from students and the tight-knit community of goldsmiths, jewellers and craftspeople in Toronto.
“At the end of the day, what we have to do is fight for it.”
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