University of Prince Edward Island



The University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) is a public liberal arts university in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada, and the sole university in the province. Founded in 1969, it traces its roots back to its two earlier predecessor organizations, St. Dunstan's University and Prince of Wales College, founded in 1855 and 1860. The two institutions were merged in 1969 by the government of Alex Campbell as part of a campaign to integrate the Island's Roman Catholic and Protestant communities, which had previously maintained the two separate institutions of higher learning. Holland College was later created to fill the void left by the merger of Prince of Wales College into the university. The enabling legislation is the University Act, R.S.P.E.I 2000.

History
The University of Prince Edward Island is a non-denominational university established in 1969 by the amalgamation of Prince of Wales College (PWC) founded in 1834, and St. Dunstan's University (SDU) founded in 1855. Its predecessor institutions ceased to operate although St. Dunstan's still retains its charter and the lands that were home to Prince of Wales became the campus for Holland College. UPEI is located on the former St. Dunstan's campus.

Campus
UPEI's campus, located at the corner of Belvedere and University Avenues in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island's capital city, is built on 134 acres (54 hectares) of land. The Confederation Trail runs alongside its eastern edge.

Original SDU buildings in the central quadrangle have been renovated to retain integrity of their exterior aesthetic design while meeting modern standards. Main Building, built in 1854, and Dalton Hall, built between 1917 and 1919, are on the registry of Historic Places of Canada.

The War Memorial Hall (more generally known as Memorial Hall) is a landmark building on the campus of UPEI. Built as a men’s residence building in 1946, Memorial Hall honours alumni who had enlisted and died in the First World War, and in the Second World War.

Over the past three decades, UPEI has experienced significant growth with many new buildings integrated into the campus, including Central Utility Building (1973), Duffy Science Centre, Blanchard Hall (1973), Bernardine Hall, Robertson Library (1975), Atlantic Veterinary College (1986), Chi-Wan Young Sports Centre (1990), Wanda Wyatt Dining Hall (1990), Food Technology Centre, K.C. Irving Chemistry Centre (1997), W.A. Murphy Student Centre (2002), MacLauchlan Arena (2004), Bill and Denise Andrew Hall residence facility (2006), expansions to the Atlantic Veterinary College (2007 and 2009), Regis and Joan Duffy Research Centre (2007), a research and development laboratory which is home to the National Research Council of Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, and other partners, and Don and Marion McDougall Hall (2008).

In October 2004, the UPEI administration undertook an official campus plan to improve the aesthetics of modern buildings constructed since the amalgamation which do not enhance the original SDU design, and to take overall campus aesthetics into account for future developments on and adjacent to the campus.

Organization
The current President is H. Wade MacLauchlan, installed October 3, 1999. The current chancellor is William E. (Bill) Andrew.

Academics
Bachelor's degree programs, in many cases including "honours" options, are available in Arts, Science, Business Administration, Education, and Nursing. Co-op programs have been established in Business Administration, Computer Science, Physics, and Dietetics. One new faculty, Veterinary Medicine, and two schools, Business Administration and Nursing, were added as the university expanded.

Master's and Doctoral degree programs were first introduced through the Atlantic Veterinary College and, beginning in 1999, a Master of Science degree was offered through the Faculty of Science. In that same year the first students were admitted to the university's new Master of Education program. The university also now offers an MA in Island Studies. Recently the School of Business Administration began offering a Master of Business administration degree. Since 1998, The Centre for Conflict Resolution Studies has been offering courses leading to a Certificate in Conflict Resolution Studies. The Master of Applied Health Services Research (MAHSR) program is coordinated by the Atlantic Research Training Centre (ARTC).

The Faculty of Education offers two-year post-degree bachelor degrees with specializations in international and Aboriginal education, French immersion and human resources development, as well as a Master of Education (MEd) in leadership in learning.

The Department of Family & Nutrition Sciences has an accredited dietitian program. The university is accredited by a professional organization such as the Dietitians of Canada and the university's graduates may subsequently become registered dieticians. List of universities with accredited dietetic programs

Rankings
In Macleans 20th Annual University Ranking(2010-2011), UPEI tied for 8th place (the other being Bishop's University) among all Canadian universities for offering primarily undergraduate education. .

Athletics
The UPEI Panthers have nine teams playing in the Atlantic University Sport (AUS) and the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS), including men's and women's ice hockey, soccer, basketball, as well as women's field hockey and rugby union and co-ed swimming.

The UPEI campus provides its students with many athletics amenities typically found on university campuses. The [CARI Complex|http://www.caripei.ca] includes a 25-metre recreational pool, a 25-metre, eight-lane competitive pool and diving boards, and two NHL-sized ice surfaces, and is open to alhtml]. In 2009 UPEI inaugurated the UPEI Alumni Canada Games Place which was built in part to host the 2009 Canada Games. It consists of a Class 2 eight-lane 400-metre running track and rugby field, with spectator seating for 1,335.

Residence
UPEI accommodates 434 students in three residences, Bill and Denise Andrew Hall, Blanchard Hall, and Bernardine Hall. Bill and Denise Andrew Hall has two-room suites with single bedrooms. In Blanchard Hall, each suite has two single bedrooms with a kitchenette and a living room. Bernardine Hall (known as "Bernie" to the students) offers suites with two double bedrooms. Although the hall is co-ed, one floor is female-only.

University Island
In 2009, the University of Prince Edward Island developed the concept of “University Island” to describe the ways in which UPEI makes a difference “on the Island and around the world.” A website, universityisland.ca, was created to showcase the University’s outreach in the areas of learning, community service, and research. Using google-mapping technology, the database includes hundreds of examples of how UPEI is making an impact, providing opportunity and leadership, and generating successful outcomes, at home and around the world.

Examples include:

Learning: UPEI is committed to students and professors learning from each other — inside the classroom and out, on the Island and beyond. With opportunities such as co-operative education and internships, teaching practicums and nursing placements, international exchange agreements, faculty exchanges, and students doing real-world research alongside their professors — on campus and off — students are applying what they learn in the classroom to the world around them.

Community Service: UPEI prides itself on being an integral part of the Island community. The campus is well-known to Islanders of all ages, from children who take part in Panther day camps or come to varsity games, to adults who use the Robertson Library or take classes through Seniors College. The Atlantic Veterinary College’s Veterinary Teaching Hospital and Centres of Expertise have an international reputation for service. Students, faculty, and staff blanket Prince Edward Island through their community outreach and volunteer activities.

Research: UPEI’s size and sense of place are assets when it comes to research and scholarship. Small size allows the University to be an incubator for new ideas, and the people needed to bring these leading-edge ideas to fruition are just next-door or down the street. Research at home, and in Asia, Africa, the Americas, and elsewhere, addresses important issues of community, health, and environment. Professors work hand in hand with students, industry, governments, and NGOs — doing work that matters in the real world.

Histories of the University

 * Bruce, Marian. A Century of Excellence: Prince of Wales College, 1860-1969. Charlottetown: Prince of Wales Alumni Association/Island Studies Press, 2005.
 * Bruce, Marian. Pets, Professors, and Politicians: The Founding and Early Years of the Atlantic Veterinary College. Charlottetown: Atlantic Veterinary College/Island Studies Press, 2004.
 * MacEachern, Alan. Utopian U: The Founding of the University of Prince Edward Island, 1968-1970. Charlottetown: University of Prince Edward Island, 2005.
 * Moase, Lorne Robert. "The Development of the University of Prince Edward Island, 1964-1972." M.Ed., University of New Brunswick, 1972.