College of the Rockies

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College of the Rockies


Established	May 8, 1975
Type	Public community college
President	Dr Nicholas Rubidge
Students	2,000 FTE
Location	Creston, Fernie, Golden, Invermere, Kimberley and Cranbrook, British Columbia, Canada
Website	http://www.cotr.bc.ca/

The College of the Rockies is a Canadian public community college, located in the southeast corner of British Columbia, Canada. The main campus is in Cranbrook, with regional campuses in Creston, Fernie, Golden, Invermere, and Kimberley. The College offers a full range of programs – both in-class and online – in the areas of University Studies, Adult Basic Education, Health, Child Youth and Family Students, Administrative Studies, Tourism, Computer Technology, Fire Services, and Trades.

1 Location
2 History
3 Student population
4 External links
- 4.1 Program links

[edit] Location

Map showing the locations of the six campuses of the College.

The College serves a regional population of approximately 82,700 people who live within a large 45,000 square kilometre area. The region, known as the Rocky Mountain Trench, features high mountain ranges separated by ecologically significant valleys and water systems.

The location allows the College to offer students a unique opportunity to blend learning with an active lifestyle. College programs, such as Mountain Adventure Skills Training and other Tourism programs, take advantage of the natural setting to take students out of the classroom and into the world around them.

[edit] History

[edit] 1970s

Recognizing the need for apprenticeship training, in 1971, James Patterson, a hard rock miner in the Sullivan mine in Kimberley, BC and member of the local School Board, initiated the process of establishing a local vocational school.

East Kootenay Community College was established on May 8, 1975 with an edict from the government that the main campus be constructed in Cranbrook. The number of registered students that first year was 351 in Cranbrook, 64 in Kimberley, 52 in Fernie, 39 in Golden and 37 in Invermere.

Sod turning for a new 130,000 square-foot facility took place in February of 1978. While it was being constructed, the college operated out of 17 different locations in Cranbrook.

[edit] 1980s

The official opening of the Cranbrook Campus took place September 20, 1982, and within the decade new facilities were also completed for the Invermere Campus (March 1988) and the Fernie Campus (October 1989).

[edit] 1990s

The College’s expansion continued during the 1990’s, with new campus buildings for Golden (May 1992), and Creston (May 1995), and the addition of over 30,000 square feet to the Cranbrook Campus to house a Health wing, Professional Cook Training facilities, and a Mechanics shop.

Associate Degrees in Arts and Sciences were offered for the first time in the 1993 academic year, and the Purcell House student residence was completed in 1995.

In 1995 East Kootenay Community College changed its name to College of the Rockies (COTR). COTR’s first on-line course, Applied Research Methods, was offered in January of 1997.

In 1997/98, the College introduced the Avalanche men’s and women’s volleyball teams as the latest members of the BC College’s Athletics Association.

[edit] The 21st Century

The college continues to focus on providing a full range of quality programs and services. A new childcare facility, Kids on Campus, was completed in October 2002. In November 2004, a wireless network for student laptops was introduced at the Cranbrook Campus, and in 2005 an Avalanche golf team was formed.

The Cranbrook Campus is undergoing a $16.2 million (CDN) expansion, with a new Academic building and a new Trades facility, expected to open for September 2007.

[edit] Student population

In the 2005/06 instructional year, College of the Rockies served 1,990 full-time equivalent students – 1,519 Ministry of Advanced Education funded students, 204 entry-level trades training students and 267 apprentices as well as 132 international full-time equivalent students from 22 countries.