St. Paul's University College

Coordinates: 43°28′20″N 80°32′50″W / 43.47222°N 80.54722°W / 43.47222; -80.54722

St. Paul's University College
Motto "Education for global progress."
Type Public
Established 1962
Affiliation United Church of Canada (former)
Chancellor Lloyd Axworthy[1]
Principal Graham Brown
Location Waterloo, ON, Canada
Campus Urban/Suburban 4 km2 (1000 acres)[2]
Affiliations University of Waterloo
Website uwaterloo.ca/stpauls/

St. Paul's University College (formerly St. Paul's United College) is an affiliated institution of the University of Waterloo, located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The college has two functions: first, it is a residence for both undergraduate and graduate students of the University; and, second, it offers classes to all University students. St. Paul's is home to: the Waterloo Aboriginal Education Centre, which offers support services for Aboriginal students; St. Paul's GreenHouse, a live-in social innovation community and business incubator; and hotel-style guest rooms for visitors.

History

St. Paul's was founded in 1962 by the United Church of Canada (UCC) and first opened its doors to students in 1963. The UCC's goal was to provide a place where students of any background, denomination, religion, or academic program could come to study and be stimulated academically, intellectually, and spiritually. The College now operates independently of UCC as a legacy corporation with no formal or legal relationship.[3]

Residences

St. Paul's University College undergraduate residence building

St. Paul's has residences at 190 and 196 Westmount Rd. North.[4] St. Paul's has two residence communities: the undergraduate residence and the Apartment Building. Undergraduate students in the Environment Faculty may be part of the popular Living-Learning Community, which provides academic support from Peer Leaders and upper-year students.

Undergraduate residence

The undergraduate residence opened in 1963 and houses 192 students on eight "floors." Seven of these floors - Empire, Wildside, Penthouse, Alcatraz, Dungeon, Oasis, and La Bastille - contain double accommodation and have been in use since the opening of the college. The remaining floor, Purgatory, opened in September, 2003 and has single accommodation. Empire was formerly known as Apathy, La Bastille was formerly known as Olympus, and Wildside was formerly known as W5 (Wild Wonderful Women of the West Wing).

The residence has several traditions that are unique to the college. The fall term begins with a week-long Orientation Week that is run jointly with the other residences and faculties to acquaint incoming first-year students with the campus. St. Paul's Orientation Week is traditionally centered on winning the Golden Beanie. Early in the fall term, the entire college plays a game of capture the flag, and another game entitled "Gotcha" where the residents try to tag and eliminate each other through survival of the fittest.

Watson's Eatery is the cafeteria at St. Paul's University College. First-year students and dons subscribe to a semi-all you can eat meal plan, containing 5 and 4 swipes per day on weekdays and weekends respectively. A swipe normally constitutes an entree with a variety of other food choices, such as salad, soup, and desserts. On weekdays, Watson's Eatery opens at 7:30 am for breakfast until 10:30 am, while lunch is served from 11:30 am to 2:00pm. Every weekday, dinner service begins at 4:30 pm until 6:00 pm, although the Watson's Grille (which serves burgers, fries, and has a deli bar) is open until 8:00 pm. However, on weekends, dinner at Watson's is exclusively open from 4:30-6 pm. Hence, Watson's offers a late dinner service that allows a student to fill out a form requesting certain food choices, where the dinner is aside for that individual. In addition, on weekends, Watson's replaces its breakfast and lunch services with brunch, which is not open until 11:00 am.

In early March, the annual Blackforest Coffeehouse showcases talent from both the college and the region; most performers present musical acts, although other acts (such as magic or spoken word) are sometimes showcased.

Each school night, toast and several spreads are made available at Toast Time so that students can have a study break. Other regular activities include writing workshops, intramural sports teams, and community dinners.

La Bastille, a floor that houses 17 French-speaking students, is the only such floor on the Waterloo campus.

Facilities that are available to students include a cafeteria with full meal service, three lounges, laundry facilities, a reading room, classrooms, a chapel (now mainly functioning as a multi-purpose classroom), and a games room.

Apartments

The Apartment Building at St. Paul's opened in September 2004. The building houses over 100 graduate students in 80 apartments and suites, as well as upper-year undergraduate students. There is a variety of designs available in the units, including single accommodation, double accommodation, and accommodation to house students with families. There are also 8 guest rooms available to visitors of the University (such as parents, researchers, and visiting professors).

Academic programs

St. Paul's offers a small number of courses in the areas of spirituality and personal development, Native studies, religious studies, and International Development. St. Paul's was the home of the Canadian Studies program; however, the program closed at the end of the 2004-05 academic year.

Waterloo Aboriginal Education Centre

St. Paul's is home to the University of Waterloo's Aboriginal Education Centre. The Centre is available to members of the university community for counselling, academic advice, and liaising to aboriginal resources. The Aboriginal Centre staff work closely with the Aboriginal Students Association to provide opportunities for Aboriginal students to explore and celebrate their heritage.

The Centre organise events that are of interest to Aboriginal students and others; they include weekly speakers, a weekly soup lunch, and an annual pow wow.

Environment Living-Learning Community

In 2007, St. Paul's welcomed Environment students into the new Living-Learning Community. This program offers students the chance to live with their classmates and attend many faculty-oriented events as well as social programming.

Principals

Books

References

  1. ↑ "Lloyd Axworthy to be installed as first chancellor of St. Paul's today". St. Paul's University College. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  2. ↑ "About UW". Retrieved 2007-08-14.
  3. ↑ "About St. Paul's University College". St. Paul's University College. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
  4. ↑ http://www.rev.gov.on.ca/en/lists/itrp/6921.html Ontario University Residences list
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