Four universities in Calgary, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Ontario are offering scholarships to children of parents killed in active Canadian military missions to help them attain undergraduate degrees.

The University of Calgary, Memorial University of Newfoundland, the University of Ottawa and the University of Windsor have created a Project Hero scholarship to honour fallen soldiers.

"It is an expression of support for Canadian Forces soldiers and their families, and a way of honouring those who pay the ultimate price for serving their country," said U of C vice-provost (students) Ann Tierney in a statement on Tuesday.

"We hope this scholarship will help the sons and daughters of these military personnel realize their dreams and plans by making a university education possible after suffering such a loss."

The program would begin Sept. 1, and would waive the cost of undergraduate tuition for four years, as well as on-campus residence fees for the first year. Students must be under the age of 26 and be Canadian citizens or permanent residents.

Inspired by former chief of defence staff

"We're going to be reviewing it every five years to make sure that it's still timely, that it's still meeting the need," said Allan Rock, president and vice-chancellor of the U of O.

"This is a long-term commitment by the University of Ottawa. We're telling families whose kids might be quite young at this stage, we're going to stand by, we're going to have this commitment there for them, and we'll be there when we're needed."

Project Hero was launched by former chief of defence staff, retired general Rick Hillier, who is now chancellor of Memorial University of Newfoundland.

Kevin Reed, a Toronto businessman who is an honorary lieutenant-colonel, took the idea to the other schools.

Reed estimates there are about 30 military children, from babies to teenagers, who have lost a military parent since 2002, mainly in the Afghanistan mission.

Project Hero is the first free tuition program in Canada; the Department of National Defence offers loans for post-secondary education.