Ontario Agricultural College

History

Ontario farmers increasingly demanded more information on the best farming techniques which led to farm magazines and agricultural fairs. In 1868 the assembly created an agricultural museum, which morphed into the Ontario Agricultural College in Guelph in 1874. Its first building was Moreton Lodge, located where Johnston Hall now stands, which included classrooms, residences, a library, and a dining room. (Several buildings constructed during this time period are still a part of campus life today, including President's Residence, Raithby House, and Day Hall.)

The War Memorial Hall is a landmark building built in June 1924 as a lecture hall or theatre at the Ontario Agricultural College to honour students who had enlisted and died in the First World War, and in the Second World War. Two bronze tablets in the Memorial Chapel remembers alumni who have died during these wars.

Subsequently, the Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) became one of three founding colleges of the University of Guelph in 1964. (The other two were the Ontario Veterinary College and the Macdonald Institute.)

The OAC opened on May 1, 1874 with an enrollment of 28 students. The OAC administration was housed in Moreton Lodge until 1931, when the building was torn down to make way for Johnston Hall. The OAC's offices have resided in Johnston Hall ever since.

Campuses

In 1997, the provincial government amalgamated agriculture education across the province under the University of Guelph and OAC. Three previous Colleges of Agricultural Technology were now being run by the University of Guelph and OAC: College d'Alfred, a francophone college in the eastern part of the province at Alfred, Ontario; Kemptville College, founded in 1917 and located at Kemptville, Ontario about 30 minutes south of Ottawa, and Ridgetown College at Ridgetown, Ontario founded in 1922 and located in southwestern Ontario near Chatham. In May 2007, they were renamed Campus d'Alfred, Kemptville Campus and Ridgetown Campus in order to recognize their full integration into the university.[1]

Programs

The OAC offers a wide range of degree and diploma programs based on four main pillars: food, agriculture, environment, and rural communities. The following degrees and diplomas are available under the OAC:

Milestones

Notable alumni and faculty

Community

The Student Federation of the Ontario Agricultural College (SFOAC) is the student government for all students studying in OAC's programs. Each OAC class has a representative on SFOAC, and these representatives aim to promote spirit, leadership, enthusiasm and opportunity. With the sanction of the Dean of the college, the SFOAC gives the student body of the OAC self-governance in matters pertaining to the student body, as well as distributing fees to classes and clubs within the OAC to promote activities.

Students enrolled in OAC programs connected to agriculture often refer to themselves as 'Aggies'. They are known on and off campus for their strong sense of college pride, which is carried out through various traditions. Many generations of Aggies sport leather jackets. These jackets are ordered for each new class year and sport a class crest, class colours, class graduation year and their program of study. Aggies are also known for their weekly 'pub nights' hosted on campus.

All students of the University of Guelph, including students of the OAC, participate in the tradition of painting Old Jeremiah.

College Royal

An annual feature of the university is its open house, known as College Royal. The event began in 1925 and now welcomes over 20,000 visitors each year. For a weekend each March, every part of the campus and its programs are exhibited to the public, from the barns to the sugar bush in the Arboretum. It is highly popular with visitors of all ages, especially families with children who take advantage of the March Break (the usual Ontario school break) to have an outing. For students, College Royal is a 12-day long experience including events such as Fashion Show, Kick-Off Pub and Super Thursday.

Tractor Tug for Tots

Tractor Tug for Tots is an event run by the Tractor Tug for Tots club of the Student Federation of the Ontario Agricultural College. The annual charity event raises funds for youth organizations each year by having teams pay to compete against each other in pulling tractors down Reynolds Walk.

Good Times

Good Times is annual banquet held for OAC students, staff, donors and alumni. The banquet includes a full dinner as well as an awards ceremony recognizing outstanding members of the OAC. Good Times is said to be a favourite event by many of the OAC ‘Aggies’.

LABash

The LABash is an annual conference originally started by three landscape architecture students at the University of Guelph. This multi-day event is coordinated for landscape architecture students from all across North America and provides students with the opportunity to discuss current landscape architecture trends while networking with fellow students and professionals.

Environmental Sciences Symposium

The Environmental Sciences Symposium is an annual event organized and hosted by students on the Environmental Sciences Student Executive (ESSE). The day brings together students, experts, and community members to learn about an environmental theme through workshops and discussions that incorporate science and social science perspectives.