Laurier celebrates 25 years in Brantford

This September is an exciting time for Wilfrid Laurier University as we celebrate the 25^th anniversary of the Brantford campus and look to what the future holds for Laurier and the wider Brantford community.

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Looking back on a quarter-century, we are grateful to the many partners, citizens, donors, and community leaders who have supported Laurier in our collective vision to become an anchor institution for the community. Together, we are providing access to postsecondary education and producing graduates who drive innovation, social good and prosperity throughout the region.

Today, Laurier’s Brantford campus is home to almost 3,000 students pursuing degrees in disciplines as varied as business technology management, education, criminology, user experience design, game design, social work, Indigenous studies, and health studies, among others.

Many of our students are in the community working in co-op, internship and practicum placements, community-workplace partnerships, research projects, and volunteer roles. They are applying what they learn at Laurier to contribute to local businesses and organizations such as SC Johnson, Icon Office Environments, Lansdowne Children’s Centre, Grand River Community Health Centre, and the Laurier-Brantford YMCA. Many alumni continue to live and work locally in sectors as varied as banking, law and policing, insurance, and healthcare.

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Laurier’s Brantford campus also attracts almost 300 faculty, contract teaching faculty, staff and managers to the downtown campus for work, teaching and research.

At the Laurier Hub for Community Solutions the university connects community members with faculty, staff and students to work on projects that strengthen the community. Some highlights include supporting the City of Brantford budget engagement survey; connecting Laurier students to teach in an after-school arts program in Eagle Place; and partnering faculty with the Brant Community Foundation to offer research and data analytics support for their 2024 Vital Signs Report.

Complementing the work of the Hub is LaunchPad Brantford, Laurier’s business incubator. Through LaunchPad, students, staff, faculty and community members can access resources and expertise to help transform their business and social innovation ideas into realities.

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In 2022, Laurier enhanced its local impact by expanding its Bachelor of Education program to Brantford to address the teacher shortage in the Brantford community and surrounding regions. This fall, we welcome 159 teacher education candidates to the campus. These graduates can fill the critical need for qualified teachers in Brantford as two new elementary schools open in the community in the next two years.

In the coming years, Laurier’s priority is to evolve the former Eaton Centre, One Market, into a community hub. Already, we have undertaken extensive renovations in this building to create student study and recreation space, classrooms, and a café run by the Wilfrid Laurier University Students’ Union.

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We invite the community to One Market to kick off the 25^th anniversary on Sept. 27 and 28 with MarketFest. Because the Brantford campus is on the Haldimand Tract, the shared traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishnaabe and Haudenosaunee peoples, Laurier is committed to building relationships and working in partnership with local Indigenous communities, the original stewards of this land. MarketFest will highlight Indigenous history and feature a market of Indigenous artists, artisans, performers, thinkers and makers ahead of Sept. 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

After 25 years, Laurier’s Brantford campus stands as a model of what can be achieved through strong university-community partnerships. Together, we’ve created opportunities in research, learning, work and service, shaping a bright future for Laurier and Brantford.

Deborah MacLatchy is president and vice-chancellor of Wilfrid Laurier University

Heidi Northwood is provost and vice-president: academic of Wilfrid Laurier University

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