University of New Brunswick

In September 1886, Mary Kingsley Tibbits became the first regularly admitted female student of UNB. She was initially refused admission after passing matriculation exams in 1885. Following political intervention by MLA John Valentine Ellis, a senate committee voted in June 1886 to admit women to the university. UNB was one of only two Canadian schools offering a Forestry Engineering degree in the late 1800s (the other being the University of Toronto), so many of the first Dominion Forest Rangers (1899–1906) were UNB graduates.

20th century

In 1906, UNB established a bicameral system of university government consisting of a senate responsible for academic policy, and a board of governors exercising exclusive control over financial policy and other matters. The president, appointed by the board, was to provide a link between the two bodies and to provide institutional leadership. At this time, the university had 156 male students, 21 female students, and only eleven academic staff, who were all male.

In 1964, a second, smaller campus was established in Saint John, New Brunswick. The growth of the UNBSJ campus is particularly notable, for the campus began with only 96 students spread throughout various buildings in Saint John's central business district. In 1968, UNBSJ moved to its new home at Tucker Park.

In 1968, the university's governance structure was reorganized with the aim of giving faculty members control of academic affairs. The UNB Act of 1968 led to the formation of two governing bodies, both chaired by the president. The Board of Governors, whose role was to oversee and give guidance to president as "chief executive officer" was to have four faculty representatives, while the majority of the Senate was to be made up of faculty members elected by their peers.

The Association of University of New Brunswick Teachers (AUNBT) was established in 1954; in 1979, this association became the bargaining agent for all full-time academic staff, and in 2008, it achieved certification for contract academic staff.

Throughout the 20th century, the University of New Brunswick held annual convocations during the month of October.

A notable convocation took place on October 8, 1957, when then United States Senator John F. Kennedy attended as a guest speaker and received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree in a ceremony presided over by Chancellor Lord Beaverbrook.

His younger brother, Robert F. Kennedy, attended another convocation on October 12, 1967, where he delivered the main address and was granted the same degree.

History

UNB's presence in Saint John dates back to 1923 when the Saint John Law School, established in 1892, became part of UNB. In 1953, the law school moved to the Starr Residence, known today as Beaverbrook House, which is still operated by UNBSJ. Eventually, after nearly forty years of remaining in Saint John, it relocated to the main campus in Fredericton.

Starting in 1951, UNB offered summer extension courses in Saint John High School and St. Vincent's Convent, which proved to be successful. This highlighted the existing demand for higher education in Saint John, which had been recognized by the city's Board of Trade as early as 1947. In 1959, there was a growing interest in establishing a college in Saint John, and a group called "Saint John College Development Incorporated" began advocating for a postsecondary institution in the city. However, the proposal faced skepticism due to UNB's financial challenges and the perceived surplus of degree-granting institutions in New Brunswick.

During this discussion, the City of Saint John provided the site of a former 229-acre farm on Sandy Point Road. The location was deemed advantageous due to its views, services, and its position in a rapidly developing area of the city. In September 1964, Beaverbrook House reopened as a satellite campus of UNB, enrolling 100 students. Over time, UNB Saint John expanded its operations to various locations, including the Old Provincial Building, the New Brunswick Technology Institute, the Presbyterian Church Hall, the YMCA building, as well as various high schools. Faculty recruitment posed a challenge, with many commuting from Fredericton or hired from high schools.

Simultaneously, plans for a new campus on the Tucker Park site progressed, with UNB's consulting architects, Larson and Larson, tasked with preparing a concept plan. The initial construction cost was $1,350,000, which was part of a $10 million fundraising campaign led by UNB. In the same year, G. Forbes Elliot took the role as UNB Saint John's first principal. In 1965, the City of Saint John transferred ownership of 87 acres of land for the new campus. Construction on the Tucker Park campus began in 1966, and the site officially opened in 1969, featuring Hazen Hall, Ganong Hall, and the Ward Chipman Library.

The campus expanded over the next two decades, constructing the G. Forbes Elliot Athletics Centre in 1975, the Canada Games Stadium in 1985, and the Thomas J. Condon Student Centre in 1986. Despite these developments, UNBSJ was considered a commuter campus until 1993, following the construction of the Sir James Dunn Residence. Additional buildings were constructed over subsequent years, such as the K.C. Irving Hall, the Modern Languages Centre (now home to Dalhousie Medicine New Brunswick), the Dr. Colin B. Mackay Residence, and the Hans W. Klohn Commons.

In Maclean's 2023 "comprehensive university" rankings, UNB ranked eighth out of 15 universities, tied with Toronto Metropolitan University.

In 2014, UNB was awarded the most entrepreneurial university in Canada by Startup Canada. The university has also supported in launching 23 new startup companies as of 2015.

In 2012, UNB's law school was ranked second nationally in elite firm hiring by Maclean's. According to Canadian Lawyer Magazine, the law school ranks among the top five in Canada.

In 2008, the National Post and the Ottawa Citizen recognized UNB as being among the top three comprehensive research universities in Canada for the highest percentage growth of research income across a five-year period.

Faculty of Engineering

The University of New Brunswick is noted particularly for engineering, and its Faculty of Engineering, which opened in the late 1800s, was the first to offer engineering degrees in Canada. The Times Higher Education’s 2023 World University Rankings list by subject has placed UNB Engineering in the top 250 engineering programmes in the world. The faculty had 920 full-time equivalent students as of Winter 2021.

Engineering is one of the three major UNB faculties, with five departments offering seven accredited engineering programmes in Civil Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Geodesy & Geomatics Engineering, Geological Engineering (jointly offered with the Faculty of Science), Mechanical Engineering, and Software Engineering (jointly offered with the Faculty of Computer Science).

UNB Engineering is renowned for its multi-faceted programmes like Geodesy and Geomatics – one of the world's top-ranked departments and UNB's foremost research hub reputed as a leader in satellite positioning technology, high-accuracy gravity field determination, and 3D high-resolution digital mapping systems. The Department's researchers helped NASA map the Moon, designed technologies used by Google and USGS, developed satellite technology for precision mapping of polar regions and the Arctic Ocean, improved fundamental mathematics and physics methodology like spectral analysis, and helped nations solve strategic problems and safety issues across the globe.

Poets' Corner

Because so many of UNB's students, alumni, and professors have produced celebrated poetry, the city of Fredericton has earned the nickname "Poets' Corner." Two of Canada's four Confederation Poets – Sir Charles G.D. Roberts and Bliss Carman – were educated at UNB, as was Francis Joseph Sherman, along with a number of notable 20th- and 21st-century Canadian writers. In 1947, the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada unveiled a "Poet's Corner" monument in honour of Carman, Roberts, and Sherman.

Institute of Biomedical Engineering

The Institute of Biomedical Engineering (IBME) on the Fredericton campus is one of the research institutes in biomedical engineering in Canada. It was founded in 1965 as the Bio-Engineering Institute, making it one of the oldest research institutes to be solely dedicated to the field of biomedical engineering. The institute is also the region's prosthetic fitting centre where amputees are fitted with "intelligent" artificial limbs. The institute also carries out research in the field of myoelectric signal processing, biomedical instrumentation and human motion analysis. The IBME also developed the UNB Test of Prosthetic Function which is used by researchers all over the world. Although the institute does not offer degrees in biomedical engineering, students at UNB usually enrol in one of the other faculties of engineering such as electrical or mechanical and pursue their research in biomedical engineering at the IBME.

Canadian Rivers Institute

The Canadian Rivers Institute was founded in 2000 and is a site of river sciences research. The mandate of the CRI is to conduct both multi-disciplinary basic and applied research focusing on rivers from their headwaters to their estuaries, to promote the conservation, protection and sustainable use of water, and to educate professionals, graduate students and the public on water sciences. Members of the CRI conduct research on regional, national and international issues related to rivers and their land-water linkages.

With researchers from both UNB campuses, the CRI develops the aquatic science needed to understand, protect and sustain water resources. Since 2013, the CRI and its partners have been working with NB Power to research the potential environmental impacts of the future options being considered for the Mactaquac Generating Station. The Mactaquac Dam on the Saint John River will reach the end of its lifespan by 2030, and CRI has been evaluating key environmental challenges such as river health, fish passage and flow management. In 2015, CRI was given an additional $2.8 million from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) to conduct an aquatic ecosystem study on the Saint John River.

In 2021, Parks Canada announced their first research chair in aquatic restoration, carrying out Atlantic salmon recovery research with researchers from the Canadian Rivers Institute.

Mi'kmaq-Wolastoqey Centre (MWC)

UNB created its BEd programme for First Nations students in 1977 in an effort to help First Nations communities take control of their own schools. In 1981, the Mi'kmaq-Maliseet Institute (MMI), the former name of the Mi'kmaq-Wolastoqey Centre (MWC), opened its doors with an expanded mandate to train professionals and improve First Nations access to First Nations education.

The Institute provided a variety of services, including research, curriculum development, language education, policy development, children's literacy, and more. In addition, the Institute funded the Mi'kmaq-Maliseet Resource Collection, which contains materials that are immensely valuable to knowledge of First Nations culture, history, and perspective in the region.

Many notable First Nations members have converged with this UNB effort. Victoria LaBillois (UNB BA, MBA), a distinguished Mi’gmaq entrepreneur and national Indigenous leader, among others, reflects the ongoing impact of Indigenous leadership in New Brunswick — a legacy also embodied by figures such as Margaret (Peggy) Pictou LaBillois, CM ONB, WWII veteran and the first female Mi’kmaq chief in the province.

Canadian Research Institute for Social Policy

The Canadian Research Institute for Social Policy was founded in 1996 as the Atlantic Centre for Policy Research, supported by the Canadian Institute For Advanced Research. The name change took effect in January 2000. The institute was designated as a Statistics Canada Research Data Centre in 2002. The institute brings interdisciplinary researchers together to focus on issues pertaining to social policy on a national and international level, specifically issues relevant to children and youth development. Projects included the New Brunswick Schools Early Literacy Initiative; Mapping Literacy as a Determinant of Health; Raising and Leveling the Bar: A Collaborative Research Initiative on Children's Learning, Behavioural, and Health Outcomes; and the Confident Learners Initiative.

Medical Training Centre

The University of New Brunswick's Medical Training Centre is the first anglophone school of medicine in New Brunswick. It is a joint medical programme, offered with Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine.

Polytechnic controversy

In the fall of 2007, a report commissioned by the provincial government recommended that UNBSJ and the New Brunswick Community College be reformed and consolidated into a new polytechnic post-secondary institute. The proposal immediately came under heavy criticism and led to several organized protests. Under heavy fire from the public, the Graham government eventually announced that it would set aside the possibility of UNB Saint John losing its status as a university and would refer the report to a working group for further study. The government would go on to announce in January that UNBSJ would retain its liberal arts programme and its association with UNB and the working group reported back to government in May, with its findings and government's response being made public in June.

The Strax affair

In March 1969, UNB was censured by the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) because of its suspension of Norman Strax, a physics professor who had led protests in September 1968 against the introduction of photo id cards. The censure was lifted after the university agreed to engage in arbitration with Strax. Among the "tumultuous events" of the 1968–69 academic year were the occupation by Strax's supporters of his office in Loring Bailey Hall and the prosecution and jailing of a student journalist over an article in the Brunswickan.