Simon Fraser University

Simon Fraser University
Motto	Nous sommes prêts (French) "We are ready"
Established	1965
Type	Public University
Endowment	$182 million [1]
Chancellor	Brandt C. Louie, OBC
President	Michael Stevenson
Provost	Dr. Jon Driver
Vice-Chancellor	Michael Stevenson
Students	32,940[2]
Undergraduates	27,479
Postgraduates	5,461
Location	Burnaby (BBY), British Columbia, Canada
Campus	Urban, 1.7 km² maintained, plus 3.3 km² of SFU community
Satellite Campuses	Downtown Vancouver and Surrey
Colours	Blue      & Red
Nickname	Simon Fraser Clan
Mascot	McFogg the Dog
Affiliations	NCAA Division II, AUCC, CARL‎, IAU, ACU, CIS, CUSID, CWUAA, CBIE, CUP.
Website	www.sfu.ca

Simon Fraser University, commonly referred to as SFU, is a Canadian public research university in British Columbia with its main campus on Burnaby Mountain in Burnaby, and satellite campuses in Vancouver and Surrey. The 1.7 km² main campus in Burnaby, located 20 km from downtown Vancouver, was established in 1965 and presently has more than 32,000 students and 900 faculty members. The university is adjacent to a new urban village, called UniverCity, also on top of Burnaby Mountain^[3]. The university was named after Simon Fraser, a North West Company fur trader and explorer. Undergraduate and graduate programs operate on a year-round tri-semester schedule.^[4]

SFU was ranked 1st among Canada’s Comprehensive Universities in 2009 by Macleans Magazine ^[5], 57th in the world and 3rd in Canada in 2009 by Webometrics Ranking of World Universities^[6].

History

The newly constructed university in 1967, with the Academic Quadrangle as a centre of the campus.

Founding

Simon Fraser University was founded upon the recommendation of a 1958 report entitled Higher Education in British Columbia and a Plan for the Future, by Dr. J.B. Macdonald, who recommended the creation of a new university in the Lower Mainland. The British Columbia Legislature gave formal assent two months later for the establishment of the university. In May of the same year Dr. Gordon M. Shrum was appointed as the university's first Chancellor. From a variety of sites which were offered, Shrum recommended to the provincial government that the summit of Burnaby Mountain be chosen for the new university. Architects Arthur Erickson and Geoffrey Massey won a competition to design the university, and construction began in the spring of 1964. Eighteen months later, on September 9, 1965, the university began its first semester with 2,500 students.

Early activism

The campus was noted in the 1960s and early 1970s as a hotbed of political activism, culminating in a crisis in the Department of Political Science, Sociology, and Anthropology in a dispute involving ideological differences among faculty. The resolution to the crisis included the dismantling of the department and its breaking-up into today's separate departments.^[7]

Coat of Arms

The school's original coat of arms was used from the university's inception until 2006, at which point the Board of Governors voted to adapt the old coat of arms and thereby register a second coat of arms. The adaptation replaced two crosslets with books after some in the university asserted the crosses had misled prospective foreign students into believing SFU was a private, religious institution rather than a public, secular one.^[8] In 2007, the university decided to register both the old coat of arms and the revised coat of arms featuring the books. In 2007, a new marketing logo was unveiled, consisting of white letters on block red.^[9]

The University today

Former President Dr. Michael Stevenson, who held the post between 2000 and 2010.

Prof. Andrew Petter, the current President and Vice Chancellor of SFU.

SFU's current president is Andrew Petter, whose term began on September 1, 2010. Petter succeeds Dr. Michael Stevenson.^[10]

In 2009, SFU became the first Canadian university to be accepted into the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)^[11]. Starting in the 2011-2012 season, SFU will be competing in the NCAA’s Division II Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC). Once completed, the transition will move all 19 Simon Fraser Clan teams into the NCAA.

SFU's research efforts have led it to obtain the highest publication impact among Canadian comprehensive universities, and the highest success rates per faculty member in competitions for Federal research council funding from NSERC and SSHRC.^[12] In 2007, the University began offering dual and double degrees by partnering with international universities. The first partnership involved Zhejiang University and a dual Computing-Science degree. One year later, the University partnered with Australia's Monash University, to offer a double Bachelor of Arts degree.^[13]

Academics

SFU has been rated as Canada's best comprehensive university (in 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2008 and 2009) in the annual rankings of Canadian universities in Maclean's magazine since 1991. Research Infosource, Canada’s leading provider of research intelligence evaluation, named SFU the top comprehensive university in Canada for “publication effectiveness” in 2006. Similar to most Canadian universities, SFU is a public university, with more than half of funding coming from taxpayers and the remaining from tuition fees.

Undergraduate

SFU is home to over 25,000 undergraduates. The university has grown in recent years recently achieving an alumni population of over 100,000. It has 911 faculty members and 3,403 staff. International students make up 7% of its student body. (University Community Report (2006/2007)).^[24] SFU's student union is known as the Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS), which includes undergraduates who study at SFU.

Staff unions

Teaching Assistants, Tutor Markers, Sessional Instructors, and Language Instructors at SFU are unionized. The union, The Teaching Support Staff Union (TSSU), is independent. Faculty and lecturers are members of the Faculty Association. Staff are members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), the Administrative and Professional Staff Association (APSA), or Polyparty. A few positions at the university such as some in Human Resources and senior administrative positions fall outside of the five associations or unions above.

Research and Affiliations

SFU also works with other universities and agencies to operate joint research facilities. These include Bamfield Marine Station, a major centre for teaching and research in marine biology; TRIUMF, a powerful cyclotron used in subatomic physics and chemistry research; MITACS, headquarters of this Network of Centres of Excellence for 26 universities and 75 companies. SFU is also a partner institution in Great Northern Way Campus Ltd in Vancouver. In March 2006, SFU approved an affiliation agreement with a private college for international students to be housed adjacent to its Burnaby campus. This new college named Fraser International College is now open in the Multi Tenant Facility located in Discovery Parks Trust SFU site.^[25]

Faculties

There are currently eight faculties at Simon Fraser University:

Main Campus

The Academic Quadrangle at the Burnaby Mountain Campus

Simon Fraser University has three campuses, each located in different parts of Greater Vancouver. SFU's main campus is located in Burnaby, atop Burnaby Mountain. Two satellite campuses are located in Vancouver's Downtown at Harbour Centre, and in Surrey. The downtown campus has expanded to include several other buildings in recent years, including the Segal Graduate School of Business, now known officially as SFU Vancouver. SFU's three campuses are all accessible by public transit. The Vancouver campus is a block away from the Waterfront SkyTrain station while the Surrey campus is adjacent to the Surrey Central SkyTrain station. The Burnaby campus is linked to the Production Way-University and Sperling-Burnaby Lake SkyTrain stations by frequent shuttle bus service.

SFU Burnaby Mountain Campus

The main campus is located atop Burnaby Mountain, at an elevation of 365 metres. The library on the main campus is called the W. A. C. Bennett Library, named after the Social Credit Premier of B.C. who established it. The campus also has two gym-complexes, an international-sized swimming pool, production theatre, a Museum of Archeology and Ethnology and three art galleries.

The Burnaby campus is composed of a vast complex of interconnected buildings spanning across 1.7 km² of land across Burnaby Mountain, from the eastern end of the campus to the western side, where the UniverCity urban village is located. The campus consists of the following buildings:

Libraries, museums and galleries

Aerial view of the Burnaby Campus

The SFU Burnaby Campus has a single library called the W. A. C. Bennett Library which holds over 2 million published books, and 6000 print subscriptions. Along with the UniverCity development agreement, residents of UniverCity are also allowed to borrow books from the library. An additional art gallery is located inside the library. SFU also has a Museum of Archeology and Ethnology, which holds many exhibits on lease from the Royal British Columbia Museum in Victoria. The exhibits are created by students as part of the museum studies courses offered in the Department of Archaeology. Archaeological collections arising from excavations and other research by faculty, staff and students are also housed in the museum.

Also located at the SFU Library is the Electronic Document Centre, which provides internet access to digitized documents from a number of archival collections, such as Harrison Brown's Xi'an Incident collection,^[26] and the history of British Columbia and Western Canada in general, including documents from the Doukhobor migration from the Russian Empire to Saskatchewan and then to British Columbia assembled for donation to the university by John Keenlyside ^[27]

Residences

The SFU Burnaby Campus has six residence buildings in total, all located on the western-side of the campus.

UniverCity

UniverCity is an urban community located on top of Burnaby Mountain, adjacent to Simon Fraser University. It has won several awards for sustainable planning and development.^[28] Development of the community began in early 2000, when Simon Fraser University commenced construction on a new residential and commercial area occupying approximately 200 acres (0.81 km²) adjacent to the campus, atop Burnaby mountain. As of January 2010, approximately 3000 people live in UniverCity. A new elementary school will be opened in Fall 2010 to accommodate families in the area, along with new child-care facilities. A number of new developments have taken place, including the construction of a new supermarket and several residential complexes.

Satellite Campuses

SFU Surrey Campus

Central City, home to SFU Surrey

The SFU Surrey campus is the most recent satellite campus, and located in downtown Surrey. The campus is part of Central City, an architectural complex adjacent to the Surrey Central SkyTrain station. It was established in 2002 to absorb the students and programs of the former Technical University of British Columbia which was closed by the provincial government. It has since expanded to house the Surrey operations of other SFU programs. The Central City complex that houses the campus was designed by architect Bing Thom.

SFU Vancouver

Woodward's Building, home to the School for the Contemporary Arts

SFU Vancouver was launched in the 1980s with a store-front classroom. It was the first urban university classroom in British Columbia. A significant portion of funding for the building of the campus came from the private sector. The Vancouver campus has four buildings spread across the downtown core: SFU Harbour Centre, the Morris J Wosk Centre for Dialogue, the Segal Graduate School of Business and SFU Contemporary Arts at Woodward's. The original campus building at Harbour Centre, a rebuilt heritage department store, officially opened on May 5, 1989. Today, the entire campus serves more than 70,000 people annually. Approximately 10,000 are graduate and undergraduate students enrolled in courses and degree programs based downtown.

SFU Contemporary Arts at Woodward's

In January 2010, SFU Contemporary Arts relocated to the historic Woodward’s district in downtown Vancouver. The 130,000-square-foot (12,000 m²) SFU facility is part of the Woodward's revitalization project. The new facility accommodates the increasing enrollment of students in the programme and new cultural facilities, including the Fei and Milton Wong Experimental theatre, screening rooms, sound studios, and art galleries.

Student Life and Athletics

The student newspaper The Peak was established shortly after the university opened and is circulated throughout the Lower Mainland. CJSF-FM radio is the school's radio station, broadcasting from 90.1 FM to Burnaby and surrounding communities, online at www.cjsf.ca or on cable at 93.9 FM. The Simon Fraser Student Society provides funding for over 100 campus clubs. Various campus events include the annual Terry Fox Run, Gung Haggis Fat Choy, Clubs Week, and other multi-cultural events. In 1966,^[29] the Tau chapter of Phrateres, a philanthropic-social organization for female college students, was installed at SFU. The organization had chapters in Canada and the United States. Tau was one of three chapters British Columbia; the others being Theta^[30] (UBC, 1935-still active) and Omega^[31] (UVic, 1961–1971). There is no documentation of the Tau chapter after 1970.

Simon Fraser Clan

The SFU Clan Logo

The university's varsity sports teams are called the Simon Fraser Clan, and the mascot is a Scottish Terrier named McFogg the Dog. In sports and other competitions, there tends to be a strong rivalry between SFU and The University of British Columbia.

The Clan competes in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) and the U.S. National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA)and the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA). In total, SFU has 15 varsity sport teams and 300 athletes. Football, men's and women's basketball, women's volleyball and women's wrestling compete for CIS championships only. Men's and women's soccer, women's softball, men's and women's swimming, men's and women's cross-country and men's and women's track and field compete for NAIA championships only. Men's wrestling competes for championships of both organizations.The lacrosse team plays in the MCLA, and hasmade the final four of the national tournament on 5 times. The team is the only collegiate lacrosse team in Canada to compete for a national title. SFU has won the NAIA NACDA Director's Cup five times, among others^[32]. On Friday, July 10, 2009, the NCAA announced that it has accepted SFU as a Division II member that will begin after a two year transition period. SFU will compete in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.^[33]. They are the first Canadian university to be accepted as a member of the NCAA at any level.^[34]

Many former Clan athletes later represented Canada during the Olympic Games, including gold medalists Carole Huynh and Daniel Igali, and Olympic medalists Sue Holloway and Hugh Fisher. Other Clan alumni include: Jay Triano, Jeff Thue, Bob Molle, Chris Rinke, Garry MacDonald, and Bruce Robertson.

There are also teams at Simon Fraser University that compete competitively against other university teams at their varsity level. These teams include the SFU Rowing Team, the SFU Lacrosse Team in the MCLA, SFU Hockey team and the SFU Cheerleading Team.

Governance and administration

Convocation

The Convocation is composed of all faculty members, senators, and graduates (degree holders, including honorary alumni) of the university. Its main function is to elect the Chancellor (who acts as Chair of Convocation) and four Convocation Senators. Convocation ceremonies are held annually to confer degrees (including honorary degrees) as well as award diplomas and certificates.

The Maggie Benston Centre, home to many of the administrative activities at SFU

Board of Governors

The Board is composed of the Chancellor, the President, two student members, two faculty members, one staff member, and eight individuals appointed by the British Columbia government. Traditionally, the Board is chaired by one of the government appointees. The Board is responsible for the general management and governance of the university.

Senate

The Senate is composed of the Chancellor, the President, Vice-President, Academic, Vice-President, Research, Deans of Faculties, Dean of Graduate Studies, Dean of Continuing Studies, Associate Vice-President, Academic, University Librarian, Registrar (as Senate secretary), 14 student members, 28 faculty members, and 4 convocation members (who are not faculty members). The Senate is chaired by the President. The academic governance of the university is vested in the Senate.

Chancellor

The Chancellor is elected by and from Convocation for a three-year term, which can be renewed once. The main responsibilities of the Chancellor are to confer degrees and represent the university in formal functions.

President and Vice-Chancellor

The President and Vice-Chancellor is appointed by the Board of Governors based on a selection process jointly established by the Board of Governors and the Senate of the university. As Chief Executive Officer and Chair of Senate, the President is responsible for the day-to-day administration of the university.

Alumni

Terry Fox

One of the most highly regarded SFU alumni and one of Canada's most treasured sons is the late Terry Fox. Diagnosed with bone cancer which resulted in the amputation of his leg, the 18-year-old kinesiology student set out to cross Canada on a grueling run called the Marathon of Hope to raise funding and awareness about cancer. As a result of Terry Fox's legacy, running for charitable causes is now integrated within communities worldwide. He also inspired friend Rick Hansen's Man in Motion world tour by wheelchair. In 2001, SFU awarded an honorary degree to Betty Fox, mother of Terry Fox and Honorary Chair of the Terry Fox Foundation.

Statue of Terry Fox in the Academic Quadrangle gardens

Notable Alumni

Honorary Alumni

In 1967, SFU awarded an honorary LL.D. (doctor of laws) to Marshall McLuhan, the first honorary degree awarded at the university^[37]. On April 20, 2004, SFU conferred honorary degrees upon three Nobel Peace Prize recipients: the 14th Dalai Lama, Bishop Desmond Tutu, and human rights activist Shirin Ebadi. At each convocation, SFU awards honorary degrees to various people from around the world for their activities and pursuits. Other honorary alumni include skier Nancy Greene Raine, Milton Wong, Doris Shadbolt, dancer and choreographer Judith Marcuse, economist Jeffrey Sachs, Peter Gzowski, Douglas Coupland, Romeo Dallaire, Canadian businessman Stephen Jarislowsky, Iain Baxter, Cary Fowler, Martha Piper, and Rick Hansen.^[38]

Scholars

Rhodes Scholars

• Joel Bakan 1981
• Natasha De Sousa 2000 ^[39]

Appearances in popular culture

Due to the contemporary Brutalist architecture of the WAC Bennett Library and Academic Quadrangle, the main campus has been used for location shots in science fiction television series such as Stargate SG-1, Battlestar Galactica and Andromeda. Its first use as a film set was for the 1972 science fiction film The Groundstar Conspiracy, in which the entire campus complex was used. It was then followed by The Fly 2, which has scenes shot inside and outside the Burnaby campus. The AQ also served as a backdrop for shots of "headquarters" in the television series The X-Files. The campus served as a high-tech corporate setting in the film Antitrust. Recently, in addition to other Vancouver-area landmarks, many parts of the Burnaby campus were used for the filming of the movie The 6th Day as well as Agent Cody Banks. In early 2008, the Burnaby campus was again used for filming, this time for The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008 Remake). Exterior shots of the campus AQ have also been used in the Vancouver-based tv series J-Pod (based on the book). The SFU Surrey campus has been featured in several episodes of Caprica with the entire mezzanine and registration area being transformed into the Caprica Inter-colonial Space Port.

See also

References

External links

• Official site

Universities in British Columbia Public universities Capilano University · Emily Carr University of Art and Design · Kwantlen Polytechnic University · Royal Roads University · Simon Fraser University · Thompson Rivers University · University of British Columbia · University of the Fraser Valley · University of Northern British Columbia · University of Victoria · Vancouver Island University Private universities Fairleigh Dickinson University · Quest University  · Trinity Western University  · University Canada West