NU announces new location in Ontario

EXPANSION: Facility to be established in City of Vaughan, just north of Toronto.

Niagara-Gazette.com
Feb. 11, 2019

Niagara University is expanding its presence in Ontario, Canada.

During a press conference Thursday at the university’s Lewiston campus, officials announced the establishment of an additional location for the Niagara University in Ontario program.

The new site, to be located in Vaughan, Ont., is the first-ever university to be established in the City of Vaughan and York Region. Vaughan is located in the regional municipality of York, just north of Toronto.

University officials said the expansion will support NU’s commitment to developing the “premier” bi-national university within the Province of Ontario.

“This is an exciting opportunity for Niagara University to continue to strengthen our bi-national relationship to build and sustain our cross-border community,” said the Rev. James J. Maher, C.M, Niagara University president. “As the largest university in the region in terms of enrollment, and one of the largest employers in Niagara County, this collaboration with the City of Vaughan will enable us to look beyond Western New York to make a deliberate and focused economic impact on this bi-national region, positively impacting the lives of others.” For 35 years, Niagara University has offered programs in Canada which operate under the written consent of the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities. Officials said the opening of an additional location in the Vaughan Metropolitan Centre will give Niagara University students and alumni a place to call their Niagara University home.

The more than 12,000 square-foot addition will include seven classrooms, faculty and administration offices, and student lounge areas. There are nine full-time faculty and administrators as well as a number of part-time faculty and supervisors on staff at that location, where more than 300 students are pursuing Bachelor of Professional Studies and Master of Science in Educational Leadership programs. In addition, approximately 50 practicing teachers take Additional Qualification coursework each year. “It has long been my dream to attract a university to Vaughan,” said Mayor Maurizio Bevilacqua. “Having a post-secondary institution in an urban setting, within walking distance from homes, businesses, and amenities, connected by regionally integrated transit, will contribute to both the economy and the quality of life for residents of the City of Vaughan. Niagara University in Ontario is an unprecedented investment in our community and in the Vaughan Metropolitan Center.”

Classes started in Vaughan on Jan. 21 for Niagara University in Ontario’s Bachelor of Professional Studies in Education program.