The great hall in the new teaching and learning centre (TLC) under construction at UBC Okanagan will be named after a local entrepreneur and retired Canadian senator, Ross Fitzpatrick.
Fitzpatrick and his wife Linda donated $1.25 million to the project.
The official name of the hall will be D. Ross Fitzpatrick Great Hall, but Fitzpatrick hopes students and faculty will refer to it simply as Fitz Hall.
“I remember having to study in the library stacks when I was a student at UBC so I’m very happy to be able to participate in bringing a much more collaborative and vibrant space to today’s generation,” Fitzpatrick said in a news release.
The TLC is a $35-million addition to the north of the current library building.
READ MORE: UBC Okanagan researchers find new way to produce living bio-tissues
- Toronto Pearson gold heist: Ontario man arrested at airport after arriving from India
- Capital gains changes could have ‘irreversible’ effects, business groups warn
- Renters so far more ‘vulnerable’ than homeowners amid higher interest rates. Why?
- After tornado outbreaks in the U.S., could Canada see similar storms?
Fitzpatrick said the student referendum in 2014 to partner with UBC to fund the expansion inspired him to donate to the cause.
“That UBCO students banded together to help pay for a better study and work space that wouldn’t be built until after most of them graduated was an incredible testament to the entrepreneurial spirit and generosity of this campus and this region,” Fitzpatrick said. “I felt it only right to reflect the same in my own contribution to the project.”
Fitzpatrick began his career when he was appointed research director for the Royal Commission into the Tree Fruit Industry of B.C. and worked in the industry until he pursued post-graduate studies at the University of Maryland and Columbia University.
He later founded businesses in the aerospace, oil and gas, and mining industries across North America.
In the 1980s, Fitzpatrick returned to the Okanagan to found Cedar Creek Estate Winery.
He served in the Senate representing Okanagan-Similkameen from 1998-2008 and in 2009 he was awarded the Order of Canada.
One-fifth of the donation will be used to create an endowment fund to support incoming students who demonstrate academic excellence, leadership and financial need.
Comments