Simon Fraser University

Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a public research university in British Columbia, Canada, with three campuses, all in Greater Vancouver: Burnaby (main campus), Surrey, and Vancouver. The main Burnaby campus on Burnaby Mountain, located from downtown Vancouver, was established in 1965 and comprises more than 30,000 students and 160,000 alumni. The university was created in an effort to expand higher education across Canada.

SFU is a member of multiple national and international higher education associations, including the Association of Commonwealth Universities, International Association of Universities, and Universities Canada. SFU has also partnered with other universities and agencies to operate joint research facilities such as the TRIUMF, Canada's national laboratory for particle and nuclear physics, which houses the world's largest cyclotron, and Bamfield Marine Station, a major centre for teaching and research in marine biology.

Undergraduate and graduate programs at SFU operate on a year-round, three-semester schedule. Consistently ranked as Canada's top comprehensive university and named to the Times Higher Education list of 100 world universities under 50, SFU is also the first Canadian member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the world's largest college sports association. In 2015, SFU became the second Canadian university to receive accreditation from the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. SFU faculty and alumni have won 43 fellowships to the Royal Society of Canada, three Rhodes Scholarships and one Pulitzer Prize. Among the list of alumni includes three premiers of British Columbia (Glen Clark, Gordon Campbell and Ujjal Dosanjh), Vancouver Canucks owner Francesco Aquilini, Prime Minister of Lesotho Pakalitha Mosisili, Max Planck Institute director Robert Turner, and humanitarian and cancer research activist Terry Fox.

History

Founding

Simon Fraser University was founded upon the recommendation of a 1962 report entitled ''Higher Education in British Columbia and a Plan for the Future'' by John B. Macdonald. He recommended the creation of a new university in the Lower Mainland and the British Columbia Legislature gave formal assent on March 1, 1963, for the establishment of the university in Burnaby. The university was named after Simon Fraser, a North West Company fur trader and explorer. The original name of the school was Fraser University, but was changed because the initials "FU" evoked the profane phrase "fuck you". In May of the same year, Gordon M. Shrum was appointed as the university's first chancellor. From a variety of sites that were offered, Shrum recommended to the provincial government that the summit of Burnaby Mountain, 365 meters above sea level, be chosen for the new university. Architects Arthur Erickson and Geoffrey Massey won a competition to design the university, and construction began in the spring of 1964. The campus faces northwest over Burrard Inlet. Eighteen months later, on September 9, 1965, the university began its first semester with 2,500 students.

Early activism

The campus was noted in the 1960s and early 1970s as a hotbed of political activism, culminating in a crisis in the Department of Political Science, Sociology, and Anthropology in a dispute involving ideological differences among faculty. The resolution to the crisis included the dismantling of the department into today's separate departments. During this time, Thelma Finlayson became the university's first female faculty member in the Department of Biological Sciences. She would later become their first professor emerita upon her retirement in 1979.

Coat of arms

The school's original coat of arms was used from the university's inception until 2006, at which point the Board of Governors voted to adapt the old coat of arms and thereby register a second coat of arms. The adaptation replaced two crosslets with books after some in the university asserted the crosses had misled prospective international students into believing SFU was a private, religious institution rather than a public, secular one. In 2007, the university decided to register both the old coat of arms and the revised coat of arms featuring the books. In 2007, a new marketing logo was unveiled, consisting of white letters on block red.

The university today

SFU's president is Joy Johnson, whose term began on September 1, 2020. Johnson succeeded Andrew Petter, who held a decade-long post as president from 2010 to 2020. Johnson's term ends on September 1, 2025, after which she may choose to seek another 5-year term.

In 2009, SFU became the first Canadian university to be accepted into the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Starting in the 2011–2012 season, SFU competed in the NCAA's Division II Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) and has now transitioned all 19 Simon Fraser teams into the NCAA.

SFU has the highest publication impact among Canadian comprehensive universities and the highest success rates per faculty member in competitions for federal research council funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). In 2007, the university began offering dual and double degree programs by partnering with international universities, such as a dual computing-science degree through partnership with Zhejiang University in China and a double Bachelor of Arts degree in conjunction with Australia's Monash University.

On September 9, 2015, SFU celebrated its 50th anniversary. Over its 50 years, the university educated over 130,000 graduates.

In early 2022, Burnaby City Council announces they will officially support SFU Gondola as part of the TransLink expansion project. This is included in the Mayors’ Council’s approval of the Transport 2050 regional transportation strategy announcement.

Academics

There are eight faculties at Simon Fraser University:

* Faculty of Applied Science
* Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
* Beedie School of Business
* Faculty of Communication, Art and Technology
* Faculty of Education
* Faculty of Environment
* Faculty of Health Sciences
* Faculty of Science

Undergraduate

In the Fall 2021 semester, SFU had 25,595 undergraduates, with 12,812 of them being full-time and 12,783 part-time. International students made up 21% of the undergraduate student body, of which over 85% came from Asia, the highest proportion being from China at 43%. SFU's undergraduate student union is known as the Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS).

Graduate

The university enrolled 4,701 graduate students in the Fall 2021 semester, with international students constituting 32% of the graduate student population. A Graduate Student Society supports and advocates for graduate students at the university.

Continuing education

SFU also offers non-credit programs and courses to adult students. , SFU Continuing Studies offers more than 300 courses and 27 certificate and diploma programs, mostly delivered either online or part-time from SFU's downtown Vancouver or Surrey campus. Continuing Studies also manages a part-time degree completion program, called SFU NOW: Nights or Weekends, for working adults pursuing a bachelor's degree.

Staff unions

Teaching assistants, tutor markers, sessional instructors, language instructors, Graduate Facilitators and Research Assistants at SFU are unionized. The union, the Teaching Support Staff Union (TSSU), is independent. Faculty and lecturers are members of the Faculty Association. Staff are members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), the Administrative and Professional Staff Association (APSA), or Polyparty. A few positions at the university, such as some in Human Resources and senior administrative positions, fall outside the five associations or unions above.

Under the previous president, Andrew Petter, SFU's administration has incurred a number of grievances and bad faith bargaining judgments. During their most recent rounds of bargaining, both the TSSU and CUPE local 3338 resorted to job action, and the BC Labour Relations Board found SFU's administration to be bargaining in bad faith with the CUPE local. Conflicts since then include unpaid wages (in Fall 2013, 18% of TSSU members reported that they were not paid on the first payday; by the term's third payday, some members still had not received their wages), and a health plan, redundant with the provincial health plan available to all international students after their first three months in-province and costing double a prior plan's cost, in which international students are automatically enrolled.

Reputation

Simon Fraser University has placed in various international post-secondary school rankings. In the 2022 '' Academic Ranking of World Universities'' rankings, the university ranked 301–400 in the world and 13–17 in Canada. The 2023 ''QS World University Rankings'' ranked the university 328th in the world and thirteenth in Canada. The 2023 ''Times Higher Education World University Rankings'' placed Simon Fraser 251–300 in the world, and 11–13 in Canada. In '' U.S. News & World Report'' 2022–23 global university rankings, the university placed 317th in the world, and 12th in Canada. In ''Maclean's'' 2023 rankings, the university placed first in their comprehensive university category. The university also placed ninth in ''Maclean's'' reputation category. Simon Fraser University was ranked despite having opted out from participation in Maclean's graduate survey since 2006.

In ''QS's'' 2022 graduate employability ranking, the university ranked 301–500 in the world, and 10–17 in Canada.

Research

In 2017, Simon Fraser University received a sponsored research income (external sources of research funds) of C$138.964 million, the 17th highest in Canada. In the same year, the university's faculty averaged a sponsored research income of $156,300, while graduates averaged $30,900.

Simon Fraser's research performance has been noted several bibliometric university rankings, which uses citation analysis to evaluates the impact a university has on academic publications. In 2019, the Performance Ranking of Scientific Papers for World Universities ranked Simon Fraser 378th in the world, and 16th in Canada. In University Ranking by Academic Performance's 2018–19 rankings, the university placed 362nd in the world, and 15th in Canada.

SFU also works with other universities and agencies to operate joint research facilities. These include Bamfield Marine Station, a major centre for teaching and research in marine biology; TRIUMF, a powerful cyclotron used in subatomic physics and chemistry research. SFU is also a partner institution in Great Northern Way Campus Ltd in Vancouver. In March 2006, SFU approved an affiliation agreement with a private college for international students to be housed adjacent to its Burnaby campus. This new college named Fraser International College, which was in the Multi Tenant Facility (now renamed as "Discovery 2 Building") located in Discovery Parks Trust SFU site, is now moved into "Discovery 1 Building" after Discovery Parks Trust returned the building to Simon Fraser University. The MODAL Research Group, based at Simon Fraser, partners with multiple Canadian universities and arts organizations to carry out multi-disciplinary research in the arts with an emphasis on the study of artistic learning and engagement.

In 2017, Simon Fraser University entered into an agreement with Huawei to receive cloud computing equipment.

In 2022, Simon Fraser University announced the creation of the cross-disciplinary Institute of Neuroscience and Neurotechnology (INN) research hub to empower neuroscience-related research and collaboration across the university.

Campuses

Simon Fraser University has three campuses, each located in different parts of Greater Vancouver. SFU's original campus is located in Burnaby, atop Burnaby Mountain. The Vancouver campus consists of multiple buildings in downtown Vancouver and the Surrey campus is located inside Central City.

The downtown campus has expanded to include several other buildings in recent years, including the Segal Graduate School of Business. In September 2010, SFU Contemporary Arts moved into the Woodward's redevelopment, known as the Goldcorp Centre for the Arts.

SFU's three campuses are all accessible by public transit. The Vancouver campus is a block away from the Waterfront SkyTrain station while the Surrey campus is adjacent to the Surrey Central SkyTrain station. The Burnaby campus is linked to the Production Way–University, Burquitlam, and Sperling–Burnaby Lake SkyTrain stations by frequent shuttle bus service.

Burnaby campus

The main campus is located atop Burnaby Mountain, on Traditional Coast Salish Lands, including the Tsleil-Waututh (səl̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ), Kwikwetlem (kʷikʷəƛ̓əm), Squamish (Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw) and Musqueam (xʷməθkʷəy̓əm) Nations. The campus is at an elevation of 365 metres, overlooking the Burrard inlet to the north. All major departments in the university are housed at the Burnaby campus. The library on the main campus is called the W. A. C. Bennett Library, named after the Social Credit Premier of B.C. who established it. The campus also has two gym complexes, named the Lorne-Davies Complex and Chancellor's Gym. An international-sized swimming pool is located within the Lorne-Davies Complex. Since the School of Contemporary Arts relocation to the Woodward's location, the Burnaby campus production theatre has been vacant. Located within the heart of the campus are the Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology and three art galleries. The campus has been awarded numerous architectural awards over the years, including the gold medal for Lieutenant-Governor 2009 Awards in Architecture and the 2007 Royal Architectural Institute of Canada's Prix du XXe siècle.

The Burnaby campus is composed of a vast complex of interconnected buildings spanning across of land on Burnaby Mountain, from the eastern end of the campus to the western side, where the UniverCity urban village is located. The campus consists of the following buildings:

* West Mall Complex (WMC)
* Lorne Davies Gym Complex
* Chancellor's Gym Complex
* Convocation Mall
* W. A. C. Bennett Library
* Halpern Centre
* Maggie Benston Centre (MBC)
* SFU Theatre
* Gym, Pool, Fitness Centre
* Robert C. Brown Hall (RCB)
* Academic Quadrangle (AQ)
* Shrum Science Centre (SSC)
** SSC Biology (B)
** SSC Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology (K)
** SSC Chemistry (C)
** SSC Physics (P)
* South Science Building (SSB)
* Applied Sciences Building (ASB)
* Education Building (EB)
* Technology and Science Complex (TASC) I
* Technology and Science Complex (TASC) II
** 4D LABS
* Blusson Hall (BLU)
* Saywell Hall (ASSC)
* Strand Hall
* Trottier Observatory and Science Courtyard

Due to the contemporary Brutalist architecture of the Burnaby Mountain campus, many buildings, including the WAC Bennett Library and Academic Quadrangle have been used for location shots in various films and television programmes over the years.

SFU Library, archives, museums and galleries

Each campus has its own library, the largest of which is the W.A.C. Bennett Library based on the SFU Burnaby campus, which holds over 2.7 million print and microform volumes.

SFU also has a Museum of Archeology and Ethnology, which holds many exhibits created by students as part of the museum studies courses offered in the Department of Archaeology. Archaeological collections arising from excavations and other research by faculty, staff and students are housed in the museum. Several large wooden sculptures ('totem') poles from the Royal British Columbia Museum in Victoria represent the major art traditions of the indigenous coastal peoples of British Columbia. The museum holds an extensive collection of Indonesian wayang kulit shadow puppets and ethnographic objects from around the world. The museum's image collection holds over 120,000 35 mm slides and digital images of archaeological and ethnographic interest.

The SFU Library's Digital Collections provide internet access to digitized documents from a number of archival collections, such as Harrison Brown's Xi'an Incident collection, and the history of British Columbia and Western Canada in general, including documents from the Doukhobor migration from the Russian Empire to Saskatchewan and then to British Columbia assembled for donation to the university by John Keenlyside. Other highlights of the collection include The Vancouver Punk Collection, which includes more than 1200 posters as well as photographs, zines, and ephemera, the British Columbia Postcards Collection, and more than 9800 editorial cartoons from Canadian newspapers.

Simon Fraser University's art galleries include: SFU Gallery on the Burnaby campus (established 1970), Audain Gallery at the Goldcorp Centre for the Arts in Vancouver (established 2010), and Teck Gallery at Harbour Centre in Vancouver (established 1989). SFU Galleries stewards the Simon Fraser University Art Collection, which includes, in its holdings of over 5,500 works, significant regional and national artworks spanning the last century.

The Bill Reid Centre for Northwest Coast Art Studies at SFU houses a collection of 50,000 objects, primarily digital images and digitized textual documents, which document the art, culture and history of different First Nations cultures of the Northwest Coast. The collection includes explorers' drawings, sketches, paintings and original photography.

Residences

The SFU Burnaby campus provides residence to 1766 SFU and FIC students in 6 different areas, all located on the western side of the campus.

* The Towers (officially opened in fall of 2004) are three dormitory-style buildings. One of the Towers features a 14-room hotel called "The Simon Hotel".
* McTaggart-Cowan Hall (built in 1985), a traditional-style dormitory building.
* Shell House (built in 1967), traditional-style dormitory building.
* The Townhouse Complex (built in 1993) are 3-level townhouse units accommodating up to 4 students per unit. There are a total of 99 units.
* Hamilton Hall (built in 1993 and renovated in 2009) is a studio-style building for graduate students.
* Louis Riel House (built in 1969 and closed in 2015) was an apartment-style building (unfurnished) used for family and graduate housing. Although the residents tried to prevent the building's closure, it officially closed in September 2015, due to mould problems.

UniverCity

UniverCity is an urban community located on top of Burnaby Mountain, adjacent to Simon Fraser University. It has won several awards for sustainable planning and development. Envisioned in 1963 by Arthur Erickson and Geoffrey Massey, the area adjacent to the university was not officially rezoned for development until 30 years later. Development of the community began in early 2000, when Simon Fraser University commenced construction on a new residential and commercial area occupying approximately adjacent to the campus. , approximately 3000 people live in UniverCity. The main commercial district on University High Street now houses restaurants, stores, and a 20,000 square foot Nester's Market. A new elementary school, University Highlands Elementary, opened on September 1, 2010. Several new residential developments are currently in progress, including the construction of a 12-storey high rise in the heart of UniverCity.

Surrey campus

The Surrey campus consists of two buildings located in Whalley / City Centre, Surrey. The main building is part of Central City, an architectural complex adjacent to the Surrey Central SkyTrain station. It was established in 2002 to absorb the students and programs of the former Technical University of British Columbia, which was closed by the provincial government. It has since expanded to house the Surrey operations of other SFU programs. The Central City complex that houses the campus was designed by architect Bing Thom

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