Changing face of campus

"Early in May of 1950, Mac and I, in Gertrude II, laden with lumber, tools, and tents, set out for the location we had chosen late the previous fall. This was Gorge Creek…"

In his book, A Cool Curving World, Richard Birnie Miller, founder of the University of Calgary's R.B. Miller Station, describes the beginnings of a world-class ecological research institution during the spring of 1950.

Born in Weyburn, Sask., Miller graduated from the University of Toronto to become a permanent staff member at the University of Alberta. He called himself "a biologist who has chosen the out-of-doors as his principal laboratory." His pioneering trout research led to important realizations about the survival of hatchery-raised fish in streams and to the development of one of Canada's oldest field stations.

"We did select a stream and we did learn what happened to the hatchery fish; thus the Alberta Biological Station was born."

Operation of the R.B. Miller Station was originally shared by University of Alberta and University of Calgary until 1991 when it was fully transferred to UCalgary. Now it and the Barrier Lake Field Station in the Kananaskis Valley comprise the university's Kananasksis Field Stations.

No longer a tent and tarp campsite, the cozy cabins and trailer of today's R.B. Miller Station continues to be favoured by researchers for its isolated location and proximity to large animal populations. Over the past 50 years, many long-term studies have been done on trout, Columbian ground squirrels, Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, pikas, songbirds and blue and ruffed grouse.

ARMSTRONG'S INAUGURAL ADDRESS 

President and Vice-Chancellor Herbert S. Armstrong's inaugural address given at convocation on April 16, 1966.

The university gained autonomy from the University of Alberta in April 1966 with little fanfare. A search through the archives turned up the inaugural address then President and Vice-Chancellor Herbert S. Armstrong gave at convocation on April 16, 1966. The speech itself is a great example of the type of oration and rhetoric of the day. Due to copyright restrictions, it cannot be published but below is a paraphrased version highlighting the key points.

Armstrong begins by stating that long-windedness is disastrous on such occasions, however, he duly gives the occasion the exhortation it deserves. Armstrong spends the majority of his speech talking about taking the broad view toward this new university. For example, he says, "One further matter concerning the broad view is to recall that there are various deliberative bodies within the university, each of which must be concerned for the well-being, not of itself alone, but of its university at large." He encourages the audience to look around: "Each of these bodies needs periodically to lift up its collective eyes and see itself in relation to others, recognizing the common purpose of it all." He continues by saying that when any such body fails to see its interconnectedness, the development of the university is then "less than optimum". 

Armstrong concludes his speech with a description of the Chinook, "the breath of warmth in the cold season." The Chinook is a promise of a better tomorrow.

UNIVERSITY THEATRE AND MUSIC WING OPEN

To mark the occasion, the Department of Fine Arts and Fine Arts hold a Fine Arts Festival. Lieutenant-Governor Grant MacEwan officiates.

PLANS TAKING SHAPE

Public Works Minister Fred Colborne predicts that after six years and $70 million invested in university construction to date, a further $250 million will be required to "round off the campus." Officials predict the student population to increase to 18,000 students by 1985.

LIVING CONTRIBUTIONS RECEIVED

“I think I shall never see a poem as lovely as a tree.”

These lines of the famous poem, “Trees” by Joyce Kilmer come to mind as one views the new campus landscape at the University of Calgary. 

Thanks to donations from several hundred Calgarians, the campus has become a more beautiful and restful place. Trees of all varieties – poplar, spruce, elm, birch and evergreen, which previously graced backyards, estates or nurseries in Calgary have been carefully transplanted to The U of C grounds. 

In the last six years, many thousands of trees have been planted on the campus and Mr. Retzer says that if they all survive, the University will be one of the more heavily wooded areas in the city. 

Many trees are growing in the campus nursery as well, which is located on 40 acres in the northwest corner of the campus. In addition, all the flowers growing on the campus are seeded in the University greenhouses, and cared for by members of the Grounds Department staff.  

A YEAR OF TRANSFORMATIONAL GIVING

Through the generous support of our donor community in fiscal 2013–14, the University of Calgary raised $129.3 million — increasing philanthropic support by nearly five per cent over last year and setting another fundraising record for the institution. Such donations reflect broad community support of our educational programs, research, scholarship, and creative activity, and place us within the top five post-secondary institutions in Canada. Our donors are people of all ages and from all walks of life who share a common belief that giving through the university will help make our community and world a better place. The vision and altruism of our donors allow us to make really big things happen.

One game-changing commitment came in the form of David Werklund’s $25 million gift to the Faculty of Education, which was honoured by naming it the Werklund School of Education. This was the largest gift ever received by a faculty of education in Canada and will help the faculty deliver an enriched experience for education students, faculty and the community that would not be possible otherwise.

The generous giving of our community continued into fiscal 2014–15, with one of the largest single investments in medical research to a Canadian university ever. In June 2014, the Cumming School of Medicine was named in honour of Geoffrey Cumming, a University of Calgary alumnus whose donation of $100 million to further medical research and innovation was matched dollar-for-dollar by the Government of Alberta. With this extraordinary $200 million investment, the university has the opportunity to lead research breakthroughs into some of the biggest medical challenges of this generation.