Royal Roads University | |
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Motto | Living Our Learning |
Established | 1940 Royal Roads Military College converted into Royal Roads University 1995 |
Type | Public university |
Endowment | $50 million |
Chancellor | Dr. Peter Meekison |
President | Dr. Allan R. Cahoon |
Academic staff | 400 full-time, plus 400 associate faculty |
Students | 2,772 |
Location | Victoria, British Columbia, Canada |
Campus | urban |
Colours | White & blue |
Affiliations | AUCC, IAU, CVU, CBIE |
Website | www.royalroads.ca |
Royal Roads University is a public university located in Colwood, Greater Victoria, British Columbia, that describes itself as "Canada's University for Working Professionals".[1]
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In 1995, Royal Roads Military College at Hatley Memorial Park on the Esquimalt Lagoon, where Canada's Pacific naval fleet is stationed, was closed and the government of British Columbia granted Royal Roads University license to open as a public university with an applied and professional focus.[2] Royal Roads University maintains strong ties with the Canadian Forces.[3]
Royal Roads' programs were initially targeted towards military personnel and other public servants.[3] The alumni of Royal Roads Military College are considered alumni of Royal Roads University and are always invited by the university to participate in alumni events and the alumni network. Bob Skene, Royal Roads University Chancellor from 2003-2006 stated "As a national institution of higher learning, I believe we should be adopting and honouring our military legacy as an institution with 66 years of history".[4]
The university's main building, Hatley Castle, was completed in 1908 for coal and rail baron James Dunsmuir, who was Lieutenant Governor and Premier of British Columbia during the first decade of the 1900s. At the outbreak of World War II, plans were made for King George VI, his wife Queen Elizabeth, and their two daughters, Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, to reside in Canada. Hatley Castle was purchased by the federal government in 1940 for use as the King's royal palace,[5] however, it was decided that having the Royal Family leave the UK at a time of war would be too big a blow to morale, and the family stayed in London.
After the death of Dunsmuir and then his widow Laura, the family sold the estate to the federal government in 1940 to be used by the military. HMCS Royal Roads (named after an offshore naval anchorage) was commissioned in December 1940 to train reserve officers for service in World War II.[6] The institution had several names before it eventually became Royal Roads Military College in 1968 (achieving full degree-granting status in 1975).
Petty Officer First Class Gabby R. Bruner, Royal Roads bandmaster from 1979-85 composed `Hatley Park` as the official quick march for RRMC and `Dunsmuir Castle` for the Visit of Queen Elizabeth to Royal Roads in 1983. [7]
When the military college closed, many of the academic staff stayed on.[8] The historic buildings of the military college, and the extensive gardens, which were part of the estate of Lord and Lady Dunsmuir, continue to be a centrepiece of the campus. Hatley Castle, the former residence of the Dunsmuir family, houses a small Canadian Military museum.
In 1995, Royal Roads became a degree-granting affiliate of the University of Victoria.[9]
A replica of Lord Horatio Nelson's quote, "Duty is the great business of a sea officer: All private considerations must give way to it however painful it is." which hung over the entrance to the Grant Building, was returned to Royal Roads University campus for Homecoming in 2011.
The museum is located in the lower level of Hatley Castle, on the campus of the Royal Roads University and former campus of the Royal Roads Military College. The Museum mandate is to collect, conserve, research and display material relating to the history of the Royal Roads Military College, its former cadets and its site.
The Royal Roads Military College Museum is a member of the Canadian Museums Association and the Organization of Military Museums of Canada Inc. The Royal Roads Museum is an accredited museum within the Canadian Forces Museum System.[10] The museum has formed a cooperating association of friends of the museum to assist with projects.[11] The museum is open to public.
Royal Roads University offers applied and professional programs at both the undergraduate and graduate level, focussing on graduate level career development. The programs are primarily offered on line, with periodic on campus residencies for face to face intensive sessions. This format is designed to favour working professionals, who may complete the programs at a distance. The University offers three formats: i) on-site with 100% face to face learning, ii) blended, with part of the program taught in a face to face residency and the balance on line; and iii) completely on-line. Residency based programs range from one to three weeks, and are often held on-campus, but select programs host their residencies in unique locations around the world.[12] Mature students are welcome, and credits are available for prior experience in the subject area. University also offers some on campus undergraduate programs. Most popular on campus programs are Professional Communications and Commerce. Royal Roads University is not a major research centre.
Royal Roads is the home to the Centre for Non-Timber Resources (CNTR), Centre for Teaching and Educational Technologies (CTET), Centre for Health Leadership and Research (CHLR), and The Todd Thomas Institute for Values-Based Leadership.[13] It is also the future home of the Robert Bateman Art and Environmental Education Centre and will house Bateman's artwork. It will also house the Canadian Centre for Environmental Education (CCEE)--a current partnership between Royal Roads and ECO Canada[14]
The Royal Roads University Student Association represents students at the University. Current student associations president is Lindsey Poepping.
Building (Year built) | Significance |
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Arbutus Building | |
Boat House (1989) |
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Guard House Building 38 |
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Belmont Road Main Gatehouse BEL 13 (1908) |
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Cow Barn / Dairy RR6 (1912–16) | |
Gatehouse Lodge RR8 (1912 to 1916) |
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Grant Building Building 24 (1942) |
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Gymnasium - sports complex (1942) | |
Hatley Castle (1908) |
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Hatley Park / Former Royal Roads Military College (1908–13) |
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Millward Wing (of the Nixon Building) (1991) |
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Nixon Block RR24A (1954 to 1956) |
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Stable / Garage RR4 (1914) | |
Swimming Pool RR22A (1959) |
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The campus and surrounding grounds of Royal Roads University are situated at Hatley Park National Historic Site. Royal Roads leases the land from the Department of National Defence for $1 per year and assumes all stewardship responsibilities related to the site including the cost of site management, operations, the protection, preservation and restoration of heritage assets, which include all buildings on the site as well as many heritage gardens and educating the public about the site's historic and natural attributes.
The grounds, a mix of landscaped gardens and natural woodland, still go by the name of Hatley Park that the Dunsmuir family gave their estate (it is not a designated park). Hatley Castle and its surroundings have made appearances in numerous movies and TV series programs such as Smallville where it serves as the Luthor Mansion, and the second and third X-Men films where the university is transformed into Professor Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters.
Visitors to the 565-acre (229 ha) Hatley Park can tour the extensive walking trails, as well as the Hatley Castle museum. The museum is free to enter, and contains historic, local memorabilia as well as a gift shop. Tours of the castle itself are available (schedule is seasonal) and access to the heritage gardens (approx 20 acres) have a visitor fee that helps offset the cost of preserving the site.
In a visit to the university in August 2009 Prime Minister Stephan Harper stated: "There is surely no more beautiful campus in Canada than Lord Dunsmuir’s magnificent castle and the majestic forest and gardens of the Hatley Park National Historic Site. But beneath the Edwardian grandeur of Royal Roads lies a cutting-edge modern university".[29]
During the life of the college, the HMCS Royal Roads Bell was displayed in the porte-cochere of Hatley Castle. After the closing of Royal Roads Military College, the HMCS Royal Roads Bell was kept in the Museum at CFB Esquimalt. It was officially repatriated on 10 Sep 2010 during the Royal Roads University 2010 Homecoming. The Bell is prominently displayed in the new entrance to Grant block in the foyer that will link Grant block and the new academic building.
Based on the 2008 National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), Royal Roads University was ranked 1st for an active and collaborative learning experience, 2nd for level of academic challenge, 4th for senior year student satisfaction, 5th for supportive campus environment, 28th for student-faculty interaction, and 37th for enriching educational experience. See MacLean's and Royal Roads media release. In 2009, again Royal Roads ranked 1st for active and collaborative learning experience; and 3rd of level of academic challenge.[30]
In 2008 the Globe and Mail Canadian University Report gave Royal Roads grades in particular categories along with 55 other universities. The grades are based on the Globe and Mail student satisfaction survey. Royal Roads was one of the 14 universities in the under 4000 students assessment pool and received a grade of B-:[31]
In both the 2009 and 2010 Globe and Mail Canadian University Report Royal Roads received and overall average of A-.[32] For a detailed break down of grades see past footnote.
The BCom and MBA programs at Royal Roads were ranked by Corporate Knights Magazine in July 2007. The Royal Roads BCom program placed 28th out of the 47 BCom programs in Canada. The MBA placed 20th out of 35 MBA programs.[33] In 2008 Corporate Knights Magazine dropped the Bcom ranking from 28th to 36th out of 47 Bcom programs in the country.[34] The MBA program dropped from 20th to 31st with the assessment pool for the ranking growing from 35 to 38 MBA programs.[34] In 2009 Corporate Knights Magazine ranked the Bcom 25th overall out of 47 universities and 4th in the Small Sized Business School category.[35] The MBA ranked 22 overall out of 35 universities and 4th in the Small Sized Business School category. It should be noted that Corporate Knights magazine bases its rankings on "the integration of environmental and social issues into university and college programmes."[35]
Royal Roads university has an international branch campus in Bangladesh. Students can achieve MBA degree on Human Resources Management, Supply Chain Management, Marketing, Digital Technologies Management, Finance & Risk Management and Banking. Royal Roads University Bangladesh Campus is located in Dhaka city.
Royal Roads was used as a location for filming the second X-Men movie called X2. Trees were damaged during filming.
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