Wilfrid Laurier University

Wilfrid Laurier University (WLU) is located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, and is known for its business program, graduate school of social work, and innovative faculty of music. It has a compact campus and relatively small enrollment compared with other Ontario universities.

History

Wilfrid Laurier University's history as an institution of higher learning dates back to 1911 when the Evangelical Lutheran Seminary of Canada http://www.wlu.ca/~wwwsem/index.shtml opened its doors to students. This was a result of the agreement made between the Canada Synod and the Synod of Central Canada of the Lutheran Church who decided they wanted to open a Lutheran Seminary. Waterloo was selected as the location of the seminary for two main reasons, the first being that land was offered by the citizens of Waterloo on the boundary of town for the seminary and the second being that most of the Lutherans in Canada at the time resided in Waterloo and Berlin (now known as Kitchener).

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1911 - Synod - Lutheran Church - Seminary - Kitchener

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In 1914 the Seminary developed facilities for pre-theological education. These courses could lead to senior matriculation, which was offered by Waterloo College. In 1924 the Waterloo College of Arts was established, offering post-secondary four-year programs. In 1925 the Faculty of Arts, under the name of Waterloo College, affiliated with the University of Western Ontario. Laurier's school colours of purple and gold originated in this period. Maroon and gold were the colours of Waterloo College, but to honour the link with Western, whose colours were purple and white, maroon was discarded in favour of purple.

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1914 - Matriculation - 1924 - Waterloo College of Arts - 1925 - Faculty of Arts - University of Western Ontario

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In 1960 the Seminary revised its charter, changing its name to Waterloo Lutheran University and ended its affiliation with University of Western Ontario. Waterloo Lutheran University became a public institution, Wilfrid Laurier University, on November 1, 1973, named after The Right Honourable Sir Wilfrid Laurier, Canada's seventh prime minister. Bill 178 was given Royal Assent to make it official.

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1960 - Charter - November 1 - 1973 - Wilfrid Laurier - Prime minister - Royal Assent

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Wilfrid Laurier opened a second campus, in Brantford, Ontario, in September of 1999. Construction of two new residence apartment buildings, a new academic building, and a large addition to the science building were completed in 2004.

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Brantford, Ontario - 1999 - 2004

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The university's Faculty of Social Work is set to move to downtown Kitchener in 2006; renovation work has begun at the former St. Jerome's high school on Duke Street East to house the faculty.

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Kitchener - 2006 - St. Jerome's high school

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The Seminary continues to operate in affiliation with the University and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada. In addition to an Master of Divinity programme, it offers Master of Theology programmes in Homiletics, Christian Ethics, and Pastoral Care and Counselling.

Related Topics:
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada - Master of Divinity - Master of Theology - Homiletics - Christian Ethics - Pastoral Care and Counselling

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