Province of BC Provinces $1 Million for New UNBC Campus in Terrace

Media Release

March 30, 2006
Issued by the BC Ministry of Advanced Education

TERRACE - Almost $1 million provided by the provincial government willallow the University of Northern B.C. to buy a new home for its Terracecampus, triple its space and expand its programs in health and otherkey areas, Advanced Education Minister Murray Coell announced today.

"By investing in a new Terrace campus for UNBC, we're giving morestudents in the northwest access to a range of undergraduate andgraduate programs that are geared to the region's needs for nurses,teachers and other highly educated professionals," Coell said. "Abigger, modern campus will also help UNBC support the local andregional economy through its applied and basic research programs."

The Province has given $972,000 to UNBC to buy a building in downtownTerrace at 4837 Keith Ave., which is easily accessible to thecommunity. The building will be renovated to accommodate teaching andresearch labs, "smart classrooms" with interactive links to five otherUNBC campuses, library services, a computer lab, a student lounge, andoffices for faculty, administration and graduate students.

UNBC currently offers a wide range of courses in Terrace, includingeducation, nursing, psychology, social work, anthropology, English,geography, history and First Nations studies. A new bridging program ispreparing Aboriginal people to become school teachers, and a master ofeducation program has 20 students enrolled. The nursing program beganthis year in conjunction with Northwest Community College, wherestudents take their first two years before transferring to UNBC tocomplete their degrees.

"Over the past five years, we've had more than 1,200 courseregistrations in Terrace, and with new programs like nursing, we'veoutgrown our current site," said UNBC president Charles Jago. "We'reinterested in further expanding our offerings, enrolments, and researchservices in Terrace, and this new location will give us the extra spaceand facility upgrade we need to better serve the northwest."

Renovations of the 1,315-square-metre building are in the design phaseand are expected to begin this summer, with students moving out of theold 390-square-metre space and into the new campus sometime this fall.

"Terrace is the northwest regional centre, and many of our young peopleare choosing to stay here for their education and their careers," saidTerrace Mayor Jack Talstra. "UNBC's expansion will help Terracecontinue to thrive and to diversify its economy, through educating morestudents and expanding its research partnerships in our area."

Government is providing more than $800 million in capital funding toexpand, enhance and replace campuses around B.C. over the next threeyears so students can receive relevant, high-quality education andtraining in modern facilities. UNBC and the College of New Caledoniaopened a joint campus in Quesnel in January. Other new campuses in thenorth include Williams Lake and Prince Rupert.

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