A $4.2 million investment brings local access to over 1,300 students in Saskatoon
On Sept. 3, the University of Regina (U of R) had its grand opening to unveil the new U of R campus in Saskatoon, extending its faculty housing to the academic apartments of the Faculty of Nursing, Social Work, and La Cité universitaire francophone.
With the help of the Government of Saskatchewan, $4.2 million has been invested towards this new campus.
This brand new facility, measured at 16,000 square-ft, houses approximately 800 nursing students, 500 social work students, and faculty along with the La Cité program. The campus features a variety of enhanced classrooms, student gathering spaces, study spots, breakout rooms, teaching studios, and technology that helps students who are in asynchronous and synchronous classes.
In a news release published online by the university, Dr. Jeff Keshen, the U of R President, emphasized that the new facility will strengthen the university’s capacity to support students and communities in Saskatoon and across the province.
I think it’s more beneficial if I stay at a place that I know and that I’m comfortable in. -Abbygail Cabert, a second-year social work student
“A university’s reach should not be limited by the walls of its main campus,” said Keshen.
He recognized that by expanding the institution’s accessibility, the university can provide assistance to students who live, work, and are building their lives across the province, not just restricted to Regina.
By branching out the La Cité universitaire francophone to Saskatoon, the university hopes to extend its presence to offer more support to the growing Francophone community.
Abbygail Cabert, a second-year social work student, said she would prefer to stay in the city rather than relocate to Saskatoon.
“I think if I go to Saskatoon, I do have to worry about income to be able to afford rent, and I don’t really want to worry about that,” said Cabert. “I think it’s more beneficial if I stay at a place that I know and that I’m comfortable in.”
Cabert felt that students who are not burdened with the worry of expenses would not stay in Regina because the University of Saskatchewan (U of S) and Saskatoon is more of a walkable and accommodating city compared to Regina.
A university’s reach should not be limited by the walls of its main campus. -Jeff Keshen, U of R President
Niamh Hickey, a first year education major, shared the same sentiment of staying on home base here in Regina. She expressed that, if her program were to expand to the new facility, one of her biggest factors in choosing to stay would be that it is closer to home, that being Assiniboia.
Rather than living off campus for the school term, she lives on campus, and emphasized that accommodations on campus are a big factor for herself. The new institution did not open any rooms or housing as it is more of a commuter campus, which focuses more on classrooms, laboratories, and office spaces.
Another third year student studying engineering, Cassey Jenner, hopes to see more facilities opening, as Saskatoon is home for her.
“It is a bit tiring for me to go home almost every weekend and if it had a campus there, I could stay to study without having to pay rent, but I could travel back just for the Wascana Lake views,”she said.
The campus is located at North Industrial, close to Saskatoon International Airport and across from the main campus of the University of Saskatchewan. With a $4.2 million investment, the facility marks a step forward in making education accessible to communities in Saskatoon, without the Wascana Lake views.
