The University of Guelph’s Ontario Veterinary College is getting $23 million from the provincial government to expand and update its teaching facilities.
The money will go towards a new 15,000 square-foot learning clinic to be built on campus and towards updating, renovating and upgrading 12,000 square-feet of existing clinical teaching space.
The funding announcement was made Friday at the OVC by Reza Moridi, Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, and Guelph MPP Liz Sandals, the Minister of Education.
“This investment will give students access to the stare-of-the art facilities they need to prepare for successful careers as practitioners and researchers,” Moridi said.
“This major funding commitment will help the University of Guelph build a new learning space with modern and flexible classrooms …. to give students an interactive, hands-on learning experience.”
Moridi noted the persistence of Sandals at the cabinet table in getting the funding.
The additional building brings the total learning space at the OVC to 70,000 square feet.
The U of G plans on tendering the project as soon as possible and start construction as soon as the usual pre-construction steps are in place.
“You made my day. This is absolutely terrific news,” said U of G president Franco Vaccarino.
“We are so enormously grateful to the Ontario Government for this strategic investment in the future of health and in veterinary medicine,” Vaccarino said. “This funding will go a long way toward supporting our continued strength and accreditation.
“Very importantly, it will allow us to maintain and continue to elevate our leadership position in innovative education and research.”
The new building will create teaching classrooms with computer-based case studies, patient simulators and medical communications labs to give students hands-on, interactive learning.
The renovated building will provide new space for advanced surgery and anesthesia.
The funding announcement is part of the provinces plan to spend $3 billion on post-secondary capital projects over the next 10 years.
“This has been a huge, well-kept secret,” said Laura Omeljaniuk, a third-year OVC student and president of the college’s student association, “the new Learning and Innovation centre will be hugely important to our education in a number of ways.
“Having the opportunity to develop our skills in a state-of-the-art building using state-of-the-art technology is going to be a huge asset as we learn these skills.”
