Everything about Simon Fraser University totally explained
Simon Fraser University (
SFU) is a Canadian university in
British Columbia with campuses located on
Burnaby Mountain, and in
Vancouver and
Surrey. SFU is rated as one of Canada’s top universities as it was ranked 68th in the world and 4th in Canada in 2008 Ranking of World Universities. It was established in
1965 and presently has 30,000 students. It is named after
Simon Fraser, explorer of the Vancouver area.
Overview
SFU has been rated as Canada's best comprehensive university (
1993,
1996,
1997,
1998 and
2000) in the annual rankings of Canadian universities in
Maclean's magazine and has consistently placed at or near the top of the publication's national evaluations. Research Infosource, Canada’s leading provider of research intelligence evaluation, named SFU the top comprehensive university in Canada for “publication effectiveness” in 2006.
Like most
Canadian universities, SFU is a public university, with 56% of funding coming from taxpayers and 39% coming from tuition fees.
Its programs are organized in six faculties: Applied Sciences, Arts and Social Sciences, Business Administration, Education, Health Sciences, and Science.
In May
2004, the SFU Senate approved the policy on compulsory degree requirements for all its undergraduate students making SFU the first Canadian university to implement such university-wide requirements. All students must complete a selected number of writing intensive, quantitative based, and breadth courses before graduation. The goal of this new requirement is to enrich students' core competencies.
(External Link
)
Population and notable alumni
SFU is home to about 30,442 students: 26,332 undergraduates and 4,110 graduates.
(External Link) The university has grown in recent years, and currently has an alumni population of 92,000. About 1,095 academics and 4,621 staff work for the university. International students make up 7% of its student body.
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), local 3338; 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.
SFU's student union is known as the
Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS), which includes everyone who studies at SFU. It was a member of the
Canadian Federation of Students, but students voted in a referendum in March 2008 to leave the organization.
Locally and internationally famous alumni include ex-
B.C. Lion and Canadian football Hall-of-Famer
Lui Passaglia,
FOX News and
CNN TV personality and political commentator
Rachel Marsden, Olympic wrestler and politician
Daniel Igali, artist
David Usher, photographer and former spouse of Prime Minister
Pierre Trudeau,
Margaret Trudeau,
British Columbia Premier
Gordon Campbell, and former Premiers
Glen Clark and
Ujjal Dosanjh.
Minh Le, while in his last year as a Computing Science student at the university, co-created the popular spin-off from the
Half Life series of computer games,
Counter-Strike, which took the gaming world by storm in 2000.
Francesco Aquilini graduated from Simon Fraser University with a degree in Business Administration. He is the Managing Director of Vancouver-based Aquilini Investment Group and is the current owner of the
Vancouver Canucks and
GM Place.
Right-wing political analyst
Rachel Marsden also graduated from SFU in the 1990s after a
sexual harrassment scandal with a swim coach. The incident, which led to the resignation of President
John Stubbs, is one of the most highly publicised incidents ever to take place at SFU.
Probably the most highly regarded SFU alumnus and one of Canada's most treasured sons is
Terry Fox. When Terry was an 18-year-old Kinesiology student and junior varsity basketball player he was diagnosed with bone cancer, which resulted in the amputation of his leg. With a prosthetic leg, Fox 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.
Honorary alumni
In 1967, SFU awarded an honorary LL.D. (doctor of laws) to
Marshall McLuhan.
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.
Some 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.
Facilities and location
Simon Fraser University has three campuses: Its main campus in Burnaby, a satellite campus in
Vancouver's Downtown at
Harbour Centre, and the new
SFU Surrey campus. The downtown campus has expanded to include several other buildings in recent years and is now known officially as
SFU Vancouver. SFU is also a partner institution in
Great Northern Way Campus Ltd in Vancouver.
The
Technical University of British Columbia, (
TechBC), a technical university created by the
New Democratic government of
British Columbia, was closed in 2002; some of its programs and students were transferred to SFU and became the core of
SFU Surrey.
The main campus is 1.7 km² located atop
Burnaby Mountain, at an elevation of 365 metres (1,200 feet). This campus was designed by
Arthur Erickson and
Geoffrey Massey after the pair won a design competition in 1963. 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.
At present, the part of Burnaby Mountain below SFU is a park and conservation area. Apart from SFU and associated industrial/technical research park
Discovery Park, there had been little development until recently. In 2003, the university commenced construction on a new residential and commercial area occupying approximately 200 acres adjacent to the campus, atop the mountain, called
UniverCity. The area will contain up to 4,500 residential units in a number of neighbourhoods, along with a new town centre, schools, parks and other amenities. As of January 2007, approximately 1200 residences, and The Cornerstone building, which includes restaurants, shops, services and rental apartments are complete. Construction of another two mid-rise residential buildings (141 homes), a mixed-use building similar to The Cornerstone, and a 1400 car multi-level parkade will begin Spring 2007. The development is noted for the first community transit pass program in Canada, and a prohibition on multi-national retailers in the town centre.
The main campus was selected to be the site of a world-class
speed skating oval for the
2010 Winter Olympics; however, the 2010 organizing committee changed its mind and decided it'll now be built in the nearby city,
Richmond, British Columbia.
The university has a theatre, a Museum of Archeology and Ethnology and three art galleries.
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.
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.
(External Link)Research
The university has recently created a new faculty of health sciences, invented the world's fastest bipolar
transistor, produced the world's smallest book and investigated the impact of technology on the nation's health sector. Scholarly research has been recognized with awards including Governor-General's, Grawemeyer, Guggenheim, Manning and Pulitzer awards, Canada Council Killam research fellowships, NSERC industrial chairs, and gold medals from the Science Council of BC. SFU faculty have won $59,709,000 in research grants and contracts, most through open competition outside the province.
(External Link)
Advanced Technology Research Centers
As the leading high-tech focused engineering program in Canada, the School of Engineering Science at SFU is well-known for the following:
control engineering,
robotics &
mechatronics,
microelectronics,
biomedical engineering,
multimedia,
systems engineering, and
telecommunications. In the world ranking of "
high-tech focused engineering", SFU has been consistently ranked among the top 20 universities internationally, although
Graduateshotline ranks Simon Fraser the 4th top engineering school in Canada.
Canadian Centre for Studies in Publishing
The CCSP is a teaching, research, and information centre based at Simon Fraser University Vancouver's Harbour Centre building. Founded in 1987, the CCSP is a university/industry initiative dedicated to the development of publishing in Canada and internationally. It is advised by an industry board and emphasizes book, magazine, and web publishing.
(External Link)
Electronic Document Centre
SFU Library Electronic Document Centre provides internet access to digitized documents from a number of important archival collections, such as
Harrison Brown's
Xi'an Incident collection
(External Link) and a number of collections on the history of British Columbia and Western Canada in general. One of these, the
The Doukhobor Collection contains a large number of documents connected to the Doukhobors migration from
Russian Empire to
Saskatchewan and then to British Columbia. It was specially assembled for the donation to the university by
John Keenlyside
Activities and sports
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 campus & community radio station. It broadcasts from 90.1 FM to Burnaby and surrounding communities, and is also available online at www.cjsf.ca or on 93.9 cable fm.
The school's sports teams are called the
Simon Fraser Clan, and the mascot is a
Scottish Terrier, "
McFog the Dog". In sports and other competitions, there tends to be a strong rivalry between SFU and The
University of British Columbia. SFU's Clan Athletics competes in
Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) and the USA-based
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). SFU has 14 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. SFU has won the NAIA
NACDA Director's Cup five times, as well as
other awards. Many SFU athletes have also
participated in the Olympics. Medal winners include
Daniel Igali (gold, wrestling),
Jay Triano (basketball, captain),
Jeff Thue (wrestling, silver),
Sue Holloway (canoe, gold),
Bob Molle (wrestling, silver),
Chris Rinke (wrestling, bronze),
Hugh Fisher (canoe, gold),
Garry MacDonald (swimming, silver), and
Bruce Roberston (swimming, silver & bronze).
Outstanding results have been achieved by several of the female athletic teams in recent years, most notably Women's Track and Field/Cross Country(NAIA Champions 2003-2005), Women's Softball (NAIA Champions 2000,2003), Women's Wrestling (CIS champions 2003, 2005), Swimming and Basketball(3 time CIS champions: 2002, 2005, 2007)
SFU also has an under-recognized hockey team. They play their home games in
Bill Copeland Arena, and compete in the
BCIHL against other universities such as
UVic and
TWU. Currently their roster consists of 2 goalies, 7 defence, and 15 forwards. Their schedule can be accessed at
www.sfuhockey.ca.
SFU has a Lacrosse team currently in its 12th year of operation. Established in 1996, the SFU Lacrosse team is an "Elite Club" or "Virtual Varsity". This means that they play under NCAA rules and regulations,(including Academic requirements) but they don't offer scholarships to their players. They are apart of the USLIA, which consists of the NCAA and MCLA leagues.(SFU is in the MCLA) SFU is the only team from Canada in the entire league, which consists of over 175 teams separated into an A and B division. This means that SFU is the only University in Canada that can compete for a National Championship against American teams. SFU is apart of the PNCLL A Division (
Pacific Northwest Collegiate Lacrosse League)with teams from the States of Oregon, Washington, Montana and Idaho. SFU's main rival is their Division opponent the
University of Oregon. They also play Out of Conference games against Top Programs such as
BYU,
Colorado State,
University of Utah Sonoma State,
Arizona State and
UCSB. Having won a record 7 Conference titles (1997-2001, 2003,2008)and having 8 National Tournaments appearances, (1997-2001,2003-2004, 2008) they're the most successful team in PNCLL History. Their success reached its peak in 1999 when they came 2nd at Nationals, being the #2 team in all of North America. They were a heavy favorite to win he National Title in 2002, but this wouldn't come to be as they were deemed ineligible that season due to a New League Rule.They are currently ranked #5 (13-1) in the Division A National Poll. Further information can be found here http://sfulacrosse.ca/
SFU's Rowing Team is another "Elite Club" that competes at the varsity level. The club competes every fall at local regattas such as the Fraser Fours, the Head of the Lake and Head of the Gorge in Victoria, and the Frostbite Regatta in Seattle. The top crews represent SFU at the Canadian University Rowing Championships and at the
Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston. Several members of the team have gone on to row for Canada. Recruiting and learn-to-row programs occur every fall and spring semester.
(External Link)
The university's
bagpipe band performs well in international competitions and is one of the university's most famous attractions. It has won most major titles: the
World Pipe Band Championship [1995,1996, 1999, 2001], the
World Drum Corps Championship [1999,2004], the
North American Championship [1982,2002], the 2001
Australian Pipe Band Championship.
(External Link)
Transportation
The relatively remote location of SFU's main campus has long posed a transportation problem for its student body. This situation has, however, been significantly improved by the recent expansion of the Vancouver
SkyTrain rapid transit system and the introduction of a low-fare university fare card, the U-Pass. The university community is now served by the
Production Way-University and
Sperling-Burnaby Lake SkyTrain stations.
Most Simon Fraser students are commuters who live in the area, but residence housing facilities accommodate nearly 2,200. The final tower of a new three building residence project opened in the Fall of 2005 at the Burnaby campus.
The downtown Harbour Centre campus is across from the
Waterfront SkyTrain station. The
SFU Surrey campus is at the Central City development next to the
Surrey Central SkyTrain station.
Residences
- The Towers
- Three 8-floor towers, currently called Barbara Rae House, B, and D
- Tailored for first-year students
- Co-ed traditional residences
- Accommodating 713 students in single rooms
- Co-ed Bathrooms
- Tower B hosts the Simon Hotel
- Madge Hogarth House
- Currently being used for guest accommodations (conference guests)
- Shell House
- Co-ed traditional residences
- There are private rooms.
- Shared kitchens and co-ed bathrooms
- Accommodating 143 students
- Named after the Shell Oil Company.
McTaggart-Cowan Hall
- Co-ed traditional residences
- Shared kitchens and co-ed bathrooms
- Accommodating 200 students in single rooms
Townhouse Complex (quad units)
- Nine buildings each consists of eleven townhouse units
- Each unit has four private bedrooms, kitchen, and living area
- Accommodating 396 students
Hamilton Hall
- Studio-style residences available to graduate students only
- Accommodating 104 students
Louis Riel House
- Residences for families, couples, and single parents
- Consisting of 148 one-bedroom and 61 two-bedroom apartments
New Residence Dining Hall
- Since the new single room residences have no kitchen facilities, students in these residences are on a required meal plan offered in the New Residence Dining Hall. The students are given what is essentially a debit card, to be used in the residence cafeteria and several other campus cafeterias.
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.
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.
Dean of Graduate Studies Office
The Dean of Graduate Studies Office is responsible for three major areas. First, the Dean ensures that graduate studies throughout the university conform to standards approved by the university Senate, as described in the General Graduate Regulations. Second, all merit-based graduate awards are administered through the office of the Dean, and this office also provides information and advice about these awards. Third, the office maintains all formal student records, from the time of application to convocation. http://www.sfu.ca/dean-gradstudies/
The City Program
The City Program, established in 1992, explores urban issues through mid-career professional development courses, public lectures and an Urban Design Certificate Program, the first of its kind in Canada. As a unit of Continuing Studies, it doesn't offer credit courses.
The City Program also publishes an e-magazine, SFU City, that explores topical issues and highlights upcoming programs, available for downloading on its web site. Publications, podcasts and videos of past events are also available.
SFU chancellors and presidents
Chancellors
Dr. Gordon M. Shrum (January 1, 1964 - May 31, 1968)
Dr. Kenneth P. Caple (June 1, 1968 - May 31, 1975)
Dr. Jack Diamond (June 1, 1975 - May 31, 1978)
Dr. Paul T. Cote (June 1, 1978 - June 15, 1984)
Dr. William M. Hamilton (June 15, 1984 - May 31, 1987)
Ms. Barbara J. Rae (June 5, 1987 - June 4, 1993)
Dr. Joseph Segal (June 5, 1993 - June 4, 1999)
Dr. Milton K. Wong (June 5, 1999 - May 31, 2005)
Mr. Brandt Louie (June 1, 2005 - Present)
Presidents and Vice-Chancellors
Dr. Patrick McTaggart-Cowan (January 1, 1964 - May 31, 1968)
Dr. John F. Ellis (Temp. Acting) (June 1, 1968 - June 5, 1968)
Prof. Archie MacPherson (June 5, 1968 - July 29, 1968)
Dr. Kenneth Strand (Acting) (August 1, 1968 - July 31, 1969)
Dr. Lalit Srivastava (Acting) (August 1, 1969 - September 8, 1969)
Dr. Kenneth Strand (September 8, 1969 - August 31, 1974)
Dr. Pauline Jewett (September 1, 1974- October 9, 1978) [Onleave: October 9, 1978 - December 31, 1978]
Dr. Daniel R. Birch (Acting) (October 19, 1978 - December 31, 1978)
Dr. K. George Pedersen (January 1, 1979 - March 31, 1983)
Dr. J. W. George Ivany (Acting) (April 1, 1983 - August 31, 1983)
Dr. William G. Saywell (September 1, 1983 - March 1, 1993)
Dr. Robert C. Brown (Acting) (March 1, 1993 - August 1, 1993)
Dr. John O. Stubbs (August 1, 1993 - January 31, 1998) [Onleave: June 9, 1997 - January 1, 1998]
Dr. David P. Gagan (Acting) (June 9, 1997 - September 14, 1997)
Dr. Jack P. Blaney (Pro Tem) (September 15, 1997 - January 31, 1998)
Dr. Jack P. Blaney (February 1, 1998 - November 30, 2000)
Dr. Michael Stevenson (December 1, 2000 - Present)(External Link)
SFU Surrey
SFU Surrey is a satellite campus of Simon Fraser University. It was opened in September 2002 to absorb the students and programs of the former Technical University of British Columbia when that institution was closed by the Gordon Campbell government. It has since expanded to house the Surrey operations of other SFU programs.
SFU Surrey is located in Central City, an award-winning architectural complex adjacent to the Surrey Central SkyTrain station. Previously, SFU Surrey occupied the former TechBC facilities in a converted Zellers store in the Surrey Place mall. However, in Fall 2006 it opened its doors to the new mezzanine, galleria 3 and podium (home to the library and specialized SIAT multimedia labs). Galleria 4, home to Computing Science and other applied sciences programs such as the new Mechatronics program, was opened in February of 2007 and Galleria 5 was opened in Fall 2007. The fifth and final floor hosts the Faculty of Business, the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences and the TechOne program, among others. Five classrooms, two seminar rooms, and five research labs for graduate students. It also has a media rich 150 seat policy/conference room, approximating the Canfor Policy Room at the downtown campus. The Westminster Savings Credit Union Theater, seating 200, opened in the fall of 2005 and has been used for public forums and community events as well as classes.
Programs
Programs at the SFU Surrey campus are offered by the Faculties of Applied Science, Arts and Social Sciences, Business Administration, Education, and Science.
Applied Science: TechOne (First year), Computing Science, Interactive Arts and Technology, Mechatronic Systems Engineering
Business Administration (concentrations in Entrepreneurship, Management and Technology, Finance, and Marketing are at the Surrey campus)
Arts and Social Science: Explorations in the Liberal Arts (first two years of an Arts major)
Education offers the Professional Development Program (teaching certification) for K-12 teachers, as well as graduate programs in Counselling Psychology, Educational Leadership and Educational Technology (Master's and Ph.D.).
Science: Science Year One, Life Sciences Year Two, Mathematics, and Management and Systems Science.
Cohort Programs
SFU Surrey currently offers three first-year cohort programs: TechOne, Science Year One and Explorations in the Arts and Social Sciences.
It also offers Science Year Two as a follow-up to Science Year One.
In the near future there will also be a cohort program for the Criminology program.
Discipline-specific Degrees
The campus also provides degrees in the sections of its business faculty, computer science faculty, and its very own School of Interactive Arts and Technology (SIAT).
Coat of Arms and logo
The original Coat of arms for SFU was adopted 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 replaces two crosslets in the upper part of the arms with two books. Some in the university asserted that the crosses had misled prospective foreign students into believing SFU was a private, religious institution rather than a public, secular one. The change caused an uproar among alumni, students, campus staff, and others, who viewed it as a betrayal of the university's history and symbolism. In early 2007, SFU 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. The coat of arms will still be used on all official documents, such as degrees and transcripts, and by the president's and chancellor's offices. The logo will be used for all other forms of communication. The logo was designed in part by Canadian typographer Jim Rimmer, who based the unique typeface on Optima.
The new logo, too, also caused debate among the campus population. Opponents said the design is too simple and/or too commercial. To many students, alumni, and staff the new logo lacks character befitting an internationally acclaimed university. Some debate centred on claims that the logo design itself had cost $250,000. The entire logo design actually totalled just under $250,000 and also includes the entire rebranding initiative, market research, audience research, and redesign of the university websites.
Appearances in Popular Culture
Due to the contemporary architecture of the Academic Quadrangle, the main campus is occasionally used for location shots in science fiction television series such as Stargate SG-1 and Battlestar Galactica. 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. The AQ also served as a backdrop for shots of "headquarters" in the television series The X-Files. 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.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Simon Fraser University'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://simon_fraser_university.totallyexplained.com">Simon Fraser University Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
