Algonquin College: 1960s
Posted on Wednesday, December 2nd, 2015
Growth in student enrolment soon necessitated an expansion in facilities, so in 1960, the Laurier Avenue Public School was acquired. In 1964, a new facility known as the Rideau Campus was acquired and welcomed more than 700 students that September.
The Ontario Vocational Centre (OVC) opened in 1965 on what is now the College’s Woodroffe Campus and it was in 1967 when the OVC and EOIT merged to create the new Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology in 1967.
Growth continued in the late 1960s, with “satellite” campuses in Pembroke, Hawkesbury, Perth and Renfrew.
In 1968, a 14,000 square-foot space was leased to accommodate retraining programs in Pembroke.
In order to accommodate the demand for career-oriented education, an additional 37,000 square feet was leased over the next two years.
When the Perth Campus opened, it served primarily as a retraining site with academic upgrading being its focus. Later, skill programs were added such as Stenography, Electronics, Welding, Carpentry and various programs relating to employment needs in Lanark County.
In 1969, a 13,000 square-foot building was constructed to house the Vanier School of Nursing, which became a part of the Woodroffe Campus when nursing programs began to be offered at the College.
Algonquin College was well set up to provide great service to students knocking at the College’s door in ever-greater numbers. Student-focused service became a theme for everything we did – a commitment that flourishes to this day.