The University of British Columbia Okanagan (also known as UBC Okanagan or UBCO) is a satellite campus of the University of British Columbia in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada.
This campus is the research and innovation hub in the province's southern interior, in British Columbia's Okanagan Valley and home to over 11,978 undergraduate and graduate students.[1] UBC Okanagan has 62 undergraduate programs and 19 graduate programs.
The current site of UBC Okanagan was initially used by Okanagan University College (OUC), which was founded in 1989 (in principle) as a part of a plan by the government to improve access to post-secondary education in the Southern Interior of British Columbia. Initially, degrees were awarded in partnership with other universities, but by 1995, the university college began granting degrees in its name. In the late 1990s, OUC started lobbying efforts to gain full university status.
University of British Columbia
In December 2002, the British Columbia Progress Board submitted a report to the provincial government, recognizing the need to expand post-secondary education in the Okanagan.[3] The board, chaired by the University of British Columbia president Martha Piper, recommended that the province extend "the mandate of an existing provincial University to Kelowna".
In March 2004, British Columbia premier Gordon Campbell and UBC president Martha Piper held a press conference, announcing that OUC would be dissolved. OUC's university operations would be consolidated at its North Kelowna Campus and would come under the University of British Columbia. The other programs and campuses of OUC would form a new community college, which would later take on the name Okanagan College. The OUC board was reportedly not invited to the press conference. It had not been told in advance of the imminent demise of the OUC Board and removal or the termination of the majority of the OUC board members.[4]
According to the ministry backgrounder released at the time, the affiliation between UBC Vancouver and UBC Okanagan would be "based on the highly successful University of California model" and that "UBC Okanagan and UBC Vancouver will each have an independent senate to set academic priorities for their respective institutions, based regional needs and priorities. At the same time, they will share a common board of governors, with strong representation from each region."[5]
As of December 2019, UBC Okanagan is represented on the UBC Board of Governors by John Klironomos and Nicole Udzenija.[6]
Academics
UBC Okanagan offers a wide range of undergraduate and graduate (Ph.D. & Masters) programs. There are more than 50 undergraduate programs[7] in Arts, Education, Engineering, Fine Arts, Human Kinetics, Management, Media, Medicine, Nursing, and Sciences.[8] The university also offers graduate programs in the following areas: Biology, Biochemistry, and Molecular Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Computer Sciences, Education, Engineering, English, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, Fine Arts, Interdisciplinary Graduate Studies, Management, Mathematics, Medical Physics, Nursing, Psychology, and Social Work.[9]
Research
Since its establishment in 2005, the research capability and researcher profiles have increased rapidly. Annual tri-council funding increased from $1.1M to $5.9M between 2005 and 2015. The total research funding reached $14.7M/year, with 714 projects in 2015. Research at UBC Okanagan is highly collaborative, emphasizing direct student involvement to advance discoveries in fields of importance globally and locally. The Survive and Thrive Applied Research (STAR) initiative exemplifies this spirit of innovation with cutting-edge projects, including control software for unmanned aerial vehicles. STAR creates a bridge between UBC Okanagan and industry, specializing in technologies for human protection and performance in extreme, remote, or rural conditions. UBCO has 15 research centres and 505 faculty members.[10]
Campus
Charles E. Fipke Centre for Innovative ResearchEngineering, Management and Education (EME) ComplexThe original UBC Okanagan Library before The Commons expansion in 2018
The UBC Okanagan campus is situated on a hill between Glenmore and Ellison in Kelowna. Street names are signed in English and Nsyilxcən language.[11] The campus consists of Upper Campus, Lower Campus, Innovation Precinct, and Endowment Lands.
The Lower and Upper Campuses are situated around the Courtyard and University Walk host the UBCO's core academic and administrative functions. Most institutional and administrative buildings are located on the Lower Campus, including the UBC Okanagan Library, Learning Commons and the Transit Exchange. The adjacent Upper Campus contains most on-campus student housing and some institutional, childcare, and recreational buildings.
The Charles E. Fipke Centre for Innovative Research (FIP) is a multi-purpose academic and research facility, including research labs, classrooms and teaching labs, offices, student commons, lecture theatre. The Arts and Sciences Centre (ASC), and Engineering, Management and Education Building (EME) were completed in 2011.
The expansion of UBC Faculty of Medicine created a new distributed medical site, the Southern Medical Program at UBC Okanagan. The Reichwald Health Sciences Centre, a medical school building, was completed by the end of 2011 and named for benefactors Klaus and Lydia Reichwald. Part of the program is also located in the Clinical Academic Campus building adjacent to the Kelowna General Hospital.
Learning Commons Building, referred to simply as The Commons, opened in late 2018 as part of the UBC Okanagan Library expansion and contains study spaces, media labs, special collections and archives.[12]
The Innovation Precinct is 24.2-hectare (60-acre) land located at the bottom of the hill along Innovation Drive.[13] Most of the land is currently used as a parking lot, and two industrial buildings at the north end are used for collaborative researches between the university and external organizations. A future expansion will convert the land to the regional hub for research and innovations.
UBC Endowment Lands (West Campus Lands) is 103.6-hectare (256-acre) agricultural land, which occupies the western half of the Okanagan campus along John Hindle Drive and contains UBC Plant Growth Facility. UBC Endowment Lands are part of ALR and are reserved for future research and recreational uses.[14] It is not to be confused with University Endowment Lands, an unincorporated area adjacent to Vancouver where the UBC's Point Grey campus is located.
Transportation
Although the campus itself is located in a semi-rural area, it has a direct interchange with Highway 97 and Downtown Kelowna can be reached with 15 minutes of driving.[15] It is also close to Kelowna International Airport.
UBC Okanagan Exchange is the northern terminus of express bus route 97X Kelowna RapidBus, which provides Downtown Kelowna access in approximately 20 minutes. The exchange is a major transfer point for bus services to the Airport and beyond north to Lake Country and Vernon (bus route #23). The campus is also connected to the regional bikeway, Okanagan Rail Trail and John Hindle Drive Multi-use Pathway.
Downtown Kelowna Campus
UBC Okanagan also has a presence in Downtown Kelowna with UBC Innovation Library, located in the downtown Kelowna branch of the Okanagan Regional Library,[16] and the Innovation UBC Hub, located in the Innovation Centre.[17]
UBC announced in June 2020 that it is planning to expand its presence in Downtown Kelowna by constructing a new 43 storey mixed-use tower on Doyle Avenue.[18] Construction was approved in August 2023[19] and is expected to be completed in 2027. The building will include spaces for health programs, community engagement, and an art gallery.[20]
According to the UBC Okanagan Campus Plan from September 2015,[22] the next 20 years will see drastic expansion in research, teaching, student residence, and commercial spaces. A proposed 85,292-square-metre (918,080 sq ft) increase in academic space would more than double the current capacity. The student residence is proposed to increase by approximately 2,200 beds to a total of approximately 3,900 beds. Commercial space would increase from 2,411 square metres (25,950 sq ft) to 4,561 square metres (49,090 sq ft). The additional space will remain within the main Okanagan campus, rather than expanding into the West Endowment Lands. Sustainability upgrades to 11 of the existing buildings are also underway.
Future[when?] projects include the newly constructed Nechako Commons Block building adjacent to the UNC (University Centre), additional residences, an engineering design building, a retrofit of a nearby industrial building billed as Innovation Precinct, and various other, more minor projects.[23]
Student life
University CentreStudent residencesSunshine cafeteria operated by UBC Food Services
The University Centre (UNC) contains many student services, including the Students' Union Okanagan of UBC office, meeting rooms, student club space, cafeteria and pub, cinema, multi-faith space, UBC Health & Wellness Clinic, learning centres, the Collegia, as well as Picnic, which is a new centre where students can seek mental and sexual health support.[24] The university also maintains a Student Experience Office that organizes orientation programs, commuter Collegia spaces, volunteer opportunities, and mentorship options.
Food establishments on campus are exclusively operated by UBC Food Services or the students' union. Nechako Commons Block (NCH) adjacent to UNC houses the 500-seat Pritchard Dining Hall, providing all-you-can-eat food access for students on a meal plan.[25] A campus convenience store, games and gym facilities, student housing, and business operations offices are also located in Nechako Commons Block.
Collegia
Common rooms known as Collegia were created for commuter students, containing kitchen facilities, study space, lounges and social areas. Each Collegium has theme and targeted for a particular student population, however, they are open to all students.[26] The campus' Collegia program has gained national attention[citation needed] as a home-away-from-home for its large commuter population.[27]
Greek life
UBC Okanagan currently has two sororities and two fraternities. The sororities are Kappa Beta Gamma and Alpha Omega Epsilon. The fraternities are Sigma Phi Delta and Phi Delta Theta. Alpha Omega Epsilon and Sigma Phi Delta are both International Organizations and have membership restrictions based upon faculty (Engineering students for Sigma Phi Delta,[28] Engineering and Technical Science[29] students for Alpha Omega Epsilon). Theta Phi is a local sorority open to all faculties.[30] Phi Delta Theta is an international fraternity open to students in all faculties.[31] UBC Okanagan does not allow Greek housing, so none of these organizations have an official house or room on campus.
Campus media
The Phoenix
The Phoenix is the bi-weekly student newspaper at the University of British Columbia Okanagan. It was established in 1989 at the former Okanagan College.[32]
UBCO.TV
UBCO.TV was a web-based TV station that existed until 2016 and created videos about research, teaching, current events and campus life at UBC Okanagan.[citation needed] UBCO.TV was also streamed on TVs across the campus in common areas.
UBC Studios Okanagan and UBC Communications Services took over the UBCO.TV functions and co-manages a YouTube channel.[33][34]
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