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University of New Brunswick

Encyclopedia : U : UN : UNI : University of New Brunswick

The University of New Brunswick (UNB) is one of the top ten comprehensive universities in Canada and it is located in the province of New Brunswick. The university has two main campuses: the principal campus founded in 1785 in Fredericton and a smaller campus which was opened in Saint John in 1964. In addition, there are two small satellite health sciences campuses located in Moncton and Bathurst. UNB is the oldest English language university in Canada and was the first public university in North America. (The University of Georgia was established the same year.) UNB offers over 60 degrees at the undergraduate and graduate levels with a total student enrollment of approximately 12,000 between the two principal campuses.

UNB Fredericton is located on the picturesque banks of the Saint John river above the heritage homes located on Waterloo Row. The campus is well-known for its colourful fall folliage, Georgian style red-brick buildings and a very steep hill. UNB Fredericton (UNBF) has shared the "College Hill" with St. Thomas University (STU) since 1964, when the former St. Thomas College moved from Chatham. They share some infrastructure but remain separate financially and academically.

St. Thomas and UNBF have a fierce rivalry in men's ice hockey and a growing one in women's ice hockey. These "Battle of the Hill" games are among the best attended.

The UNB Saint John (UNBSJ) campus is located in Tucker Park in the Millidgeville neighbourhood, several kilometres north of the city's central business district and offers spectacular views of the Kennebecasis River and Grand Bay. New Brunswick's largest health care facility, Saint John Regional Hospital, is located adjacent to the UNBSJ campus.

Both campuses have undergone significant expansion over the years with many prominent buildings at UNBF and UNBSJ being the recipient of funding from Lord Beaverbrook and other prominent industrialists and philanthropists. UNB's largest expansion coincided with the Baby boom, and its Fredericton campus tripled in size. In 1973 the New Brunswick Teachers' College (now the Faculty of Education) was absorbed into UNB.

The growth of the UNBSJ campus is particularly notable, considering it began in 1964 with only 96 students, spread around buildings in Saint John's central business district. By the late 1960s, the Saint John Law School was moved to UNBF to become UNB's Faculty of Law, and in 1968 UNBSJ moved into its new campus at Tucker Park. Currently UNBF has approximately 9,000 students while UNBSJ has 3,000 although UNBSJ is currently growing at a faster rate.

Contents

Trivia

UNB offered Canada's first university-level engineering program, established in 1855 and the first engineers graduating in 1857.

The University was the only institution to grant President John. F Kennedy an Honorary Doctorate in his own lifetime.

UNB owns 7,700 acres of real property in several sites, including an extensive wood lot adjacent to the Maritime Forestry Complex, used for forestry education and research.

Until 1968, the university had the power to expropriate land "it may deem necessary for the purpose of the University" without approval from the government.

Forging Our Futures Campaign

Forging Our Futures is the most important development campaign in UNB’s more-than-200-year history. It will make strategic investments in students, faculty, facilities and programs. The campaign will strengthen UNB’s position as a national university that is fundamentally important to the economic, social and cultural well-being of the province, the region and the country. Officially launched in June 2005, Forging Our Futures is the largest fundraising campaign in New Brunswick history. More information on the campaign can be found online at www.unbfutures.ca.

Historical Campus

UNB Fredericton's Old Arts Building
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UNB Fredericton's Old Arts Building

Sir Howard Douglas Hall, which is commonly known as the 'Old Arts' building on the Fredericton campus, is the oldest university building still in use in Canada. The lobby of the building resembles a small museum due to the historic documents and other artifacts stored there. The Edwin Jacob chapel is also located in the lobby of the Sir Howard Douglas Hall. The 'Great Hallways' of this building are filled with history as they are lined with portraits of past presidents of the university.

The first astronomical observatory in Canada, the Brydone-Jack observatory lies adjacent to Sir Howard Douglas Hall and was first operational in 1851. The observatory was named after William Brydone-Jack, a professor of mathematics and later president of the university. Due to the work done by Brydone-Jack at this observatory, Fredericton was the first location in Canada that had its longitude accurately determined.

Institute of Biomedical Engineering

The Institute of Biomedical Engineering (IBME) on the Fredericton campus is one of the leading research institutes in biomedical engineering in Canada. It was founded in 1965 as the Bio-Engineering Institute, making it one of the oldest research institutes to be solely dedicated to the field of biomedical engineering. The institute is also the region's prosthetic fitting centre where amputees are fitted with state-of-the-art intelligent artificial limbs. The institute also carries out research in the field of myoelectric signal processing, biomedical instrumentation and human motion analysis. The IBME also developed the UNB Test of Prosthetic Function which is used by researchers all over the world. Although the institute does not offer degrees in biomedical engineering, students at UNB usually enroll in one of the other faculties of engineering such as electrical or mechanical and pursue their research in biomedical engineering at the IBME.

Residence

UNB has a strong tradition of residences, with long-established customs and events. The most famous of these is the annual Great Pumpkin sacrifice, currently in existence for 33 years in Harrison House. The Pumpkin is carried around campus, blessed and then hurled off the roof. It symbolises hope for a good academic harvest. It began when Marc Milner, now Dr Milner of UNB History Department began to throw pumpkins off the roof when inebriated over Halloween. The tradition has continued and expanded, despite the best efforts of the University administration to close it down. The event is followed by a massive party off-campus.

In what has become an exemplary demonstration of philanthropy, the residents of [Neville House] have created a tradition known around Fredericton, New Brunswick, and the Atlantic region for its fundraising success and its dedication to an important social cause. The annual Neville House [Bed Push] is a marathon event. During the first two months of the academic year, [Norsemen] of Neville collect pledges in a massive door-to-door canvassing campaign, hold fundraising events at local establishments, and recruit corporate sponsors in a effort to raise monies for Women in Transition House, Inc. (WITH), a local shelter for abused women and children. At the end of the fundraising campaign, the Norsemen travel to Saint John, NB where they construct a bed on wheels and set off on provincial highways to push the bed 100 km to Fredericton, overnight--a 12 hour running journey. The Bed Push arrives in Fredericton via the UNB campus, where it raises a commotion in the residence community, making its way to its final destination amid a boisterous crowd at the Boyce Farmers' Market. The event, free of drugs and alcohol, is a model for university students who wish to have a good time without excessive alcohol consumption, but there is always a large celebration held at Neville House and at alumni houses following the event. The Bed Push is aimed at raising awareness about an important issue. Pushing a bed along provincial and city roadways has helped increase focus in Fredericton and around the province of New Brunswick on the issue of domestic abuse. In 2004, Bed Push joined with MensWork, a provincial network of men and men's organizations dedicated to eliminating violence against women and children. Since its inception, Bed Push has grown to claim the title of largest student-run fundraiser at UNB, having donated over $130,000 to the transition house. With only 100 annual participants, the Bed Push often surpasses fundraising levels set by campus wide fundraisers such as Shinerama at UNB Fredericton. In 2005, Bed Push set a residence fundraising record of $22,000; this was the third consecutive year in a row that Bed Push achieved a record-setting level of success. The Norsemen would not be able to achieve this success without the support of a generous public, led by community leaders dedicated to raising awareness. Bed Push has been recognized twice on the floor of the New Brunswick Legislature, and individuals including Lieutenant Governors, federal and provincial cabinet ministers, mayors, and others have each recognized and contributed to Bed Push in their own meaningful way.

Athletics

UNB Fredericton is represented in Canadian Interuniversity Sport by the UNB Varsity Reds while UNBSJ is represented by UNBSJ Seawolves. UNBF used to have different names for each individual sport's team; for instance, the men's swim team was the Beavers, and the hockey team was the Red Devils.

Notable Students and Alumni

Faculties

UNB Fredericton

UNB Saint John

External links


{| class="toccolours" style="margin: auto; border=0; cellpadding=0;" |

! style="background:#ccccff" align="center" width="100%" | New Brunswick universities ||

|- | align="center" style=font-size: 70%;" colspan="4" | Public universities |- | align="center" style="font-size: 90%;" colspan="4" | Moncton | Mount Allison | New Brunswick | St. Thomas |- | align="center" style=font-size: 70%;" colspan="4" | Private universities |- | align="center" style="font-size: 90%;" colspan="4" |Atlantic Baptist | Bethany | St. Stephen's

 

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