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Athabasca University
Athabasca University (AU) is a Canadian public university that primarily operates through online distance education. Founded in 1970, it is one of four comprehensive academic and research universities in Alberta, and was the first Canadian university to specialize in distance education.
In 1967, the Manning government announced its intention to establish a fourth public university, but this would be delayed by three years as the government considered different proposals. The U of A wanted to expand rather than see another university open in Edmonton to compete with it. One proposal favoured establishing a Christian university instead of a secular one. Another early suggestion was an "Alberta academy" that would take credits students had earned at multiple universities, evaluate them for transfer, and perhaps award degrees. A Department of Education ad hoc group favoured the establishment of a fourth public university.
Athabasca University was created by the Alberta government in 1970 as part of an expansion of higher education to cope with rising enrolment at the time. A group of U of A graduates including Preston Manning influenced the development. In 1970, Grant MacEwan, then the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta, established AU by an Order in Council. The name for the new university was a challenge, as it was not desired to associate the new university with a city (Edmonton) that already had a university (the U of A). Athabasca Hall, a student residence at the U of A, was scheduled for demolition, so the name was appropriated for the new Athabasca University.
The initial mandate for Athabasca University dictated that AU be primarily undergraduate in scope. Creating new procedures for curriculum development was also part of the mandate.
In April 1971, Timothy C. Byrne was appointed the first president of Athabasca University, and he assumed office in June that year.
The initial governing authority of the university had eight members as well as a broad range of powers to set up the new university. On 2–3 July 1970, they met for the first time, and Carl W. Clement was the first chair. It was expected by the government of the day that AU would have 10,000 students by 1979. 1 September 1973, was set as the target date to open.
The AU administration chose the University of California, Santa Cruz, as its model, deciding that individual colleges should serve as the basic planning units for the new university, which would be organized as a federation of colleges. Each of the colleges was to have 650 students with corresponding lecture and office space. The learning approach would have students in small tutorials instead of large lectures. Research within the new university was to be limited to a specified region around the city of Edmonton. One criticism was that the university was trying to do too much.
The government of Peter Lougheed in 1971 brought changes including a cabinet portfolio specifically for post-secondary education. The newly elected Conservative government was opposed to building a new university in Edmonton, but architectural plans were permitted to continue. A proposal was made to the government to test the new model for three to five years, and if it succeeded, AU would become a fully independent university. This happened under chair Merrill Wolfe. The proposal was accepted by the government.
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Athabasca University
Athabasca University (AU) is a Canadian public university that primarily operates through online distance education. Founded in 1970, it is one of four comprehensive academic and research universities in Alberta, and was the first Canadian university to specialize in distance education.
In 1967, the Manning government announced its intention to establish a fourth public university, but this would be delayed by three years as the government considered different proposals. The U of A wanted to expand rather than see another university open in Edmonton to compete with it. One proposal favoured establishing a Christian university instead of a secular one. Another early suggestion was an "Alberta academy" that would take credits students had earned at multiple universities, evaluate them for transfer, and perhaps award degrees. A Department of Education ad hoc group favoured the establishment of a fourth public university.
Athabasca University was created by the Alberta government in 1970 as part of an expansion of higher education to cope with rising enrolment at the time. A group of U of A graduates including Preston Manning influenced the development. In 1970, Grant MacEwan, then the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta, established AU by an Order in Council. The name for the new university was a challenge, as it was not desired to associate the new university with a city (Edmonton) that already had a university (the U of A). Athabasca Hall, a student residence at the U of A, was scheduled for demolition, so the name was appropriated for the new Athabasca University.
The initial mandate for Athabasca University dictated that AU be primarily undergraduate in scope. Creating new procedures for curriculum development was also part of the mandate.
In April 1971, Timothy C. Byrne was appointed the first president of Athabasca University, and he assumed office in June that year.
The initial governing authority of the university had eight members as well as a broad range of powers to set up the new university. On 2–3 July 1970, they met for the first time, and Carl W. Clement was the first chair. It was expected by the government of the day that AU would have 10,000 students by 1979. 1 September 1973, was set as the target date to open.
The AU administration chose the University of California, Santa Cruz, as its model, deciding that individual colleges should serve as the basic planning units for the new university, which would be organized as a federation of colleges. Each of the colleges was to have 650 students with corresponding lecture and office space. The learning approach would have students in small tutorials instead of large lectures. Research within the new university was to be limited to a specified region around the city of Edmonton. One criticism was that the university was trying to do too much.
The government of Peter Lougheed in 1971 brought changes including a cabinet portfolio specifically for post-secondary education. The newly elected Conservative government was opposed to building a new university in Edmonton, but architectural plans were permitted to continue. A proposal was made to the government to test the new model for three to five years, and if it succeeded, AU would become a fully independent university. This happened under chair Merrill Wolfe. The proposal was accepted by the government.