Fade to Play

Dr. Irving K. Barber and Phillip Jeffrey

Last Friday I attended the Grand Opening of the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre here at the University of British Columbia on Media credentials. It was an eye-opening experience and I am really glad I was able to attend because I had only been in the Learning Centre on two occasions and I was interested in meeting some of the people behind its construction.

To provide context to my experiences today, I hadn’t visited the Learning Centre before this week, although many of the spaces were open from late February. Last Tuesday, I walked inside to use a computer as I am without my laptop for a short period of time. To put it mindly I was blown away, I was simply unprepared for the beautiful, open space around me as I stood on the top of the stairs. As I walked around I observed students sitting with open laptops being productive with end-of-term papers, group studying, or early preparation for exams. Rather that an area of books, it was designed to facilitate the development of knowledge wherever someone wanted to plop themselves down. Everywhere were plugs for laptops – this space was designed with a realisation that the future of learning is mobility. Today students are using their laptops to get their work down. The days of groupwork huddled around a desktop or standing in line forever to use one of the Student Computer Labs is past. This is the future of learning and this type of space has been long desired on campus.

What is also really beneficial is that there is a cafe in the Learning Centre with ample space for sitting down and working while eating or drinking a coffee. There is no need to trek to the SUB, residence, or the Village. One can quickly recharge and get back to work without losing valuable time — very important especially during the exam period.

I also noted that the Learning Centre had extended hours until 1am from Monday to Thursday which is simply great. I stayed until 1am on Wednesday and noted that there were a fair number of students still there working at close. I personally think that the Learning Centre could be an experiment in opening all night during the exam period. I am sure it would be appreciated by students wanting a quiet place to study.

So I have provided the context behind why I felt it was important for me to attend the Grand Opening as Media, as it was a private affair closed to the public.

The event was live-casted and an archived copy should be available here soon.

Irving K. Barber Learning Centre

Background
The $79.7 million Irving K. Barber Learning Centre is constructed around the refurbrished core of the UBC Main Library, built in 1925, one of the first buildings on campus. Within its walls are Canada’s first robotic library storage unit called ASRS, a lecture theatre, extensive study spaces and seminar rooms.

The Learning Centre is equipped with high-speed Internet access, campus WiFi, as well as video-conferencing capacities. There are 250 000 square feet of new and renovated space which are provided to support learning and research here. Around 1 500 study seats are provided for informal learning.

Who is Irving K. (Ike) Barber?

• 85 years old, one of B.C.’s most prominent entrepreneuers
• came to UBC in 1945 after service in WWII
• founded Slocan Forest Products Ltd. at age 55
• appointed to the Order of Canada and Order of British Columbia
• created the Irving K. Barber Chair in Diabetes Research at UBC
• has 3 children, 9 grandchildren, and 15 great-grandchildren with his wife Jean

Former UBC President Martha Piper, Irving K. Barber, Jean Barber, The Honourable Gordon Campbell

Official Ceremony

At the official ceremony Mary Charles, an Elder of the Musqueam Indian Band provided a prayer on behalf of the Musqueum people whose land UBC resides on.

Mary Charles, Musqueam Indian Band

Next The Honourable Gordon Campbell, Premier of British Columbia, spoke about the commitment of Dr. Barber towards higher education.

The Honourable Gordon Campell

Brad Bennett spoke next as chair of the UBC Board of Governors

Brad Bennett

This was followed by Professor Stephen J. Toope, UBC President and Vice-Chancellor who spoke about the advantages of the additional learning spaces for students on the UBC campus.

Professor Stephen J. Toope

Next was Dr. Irving K. Barber who gave an inspiring speech in which he spoke about how he came to UBC and why he felt it was important to give some of his wealth back to the community. What is very cool is that he was often here during the development of the building keeping up to date on its progress.

Dr. Irving K. Barber

Andre Malan, a 2nd year Computer Science student in the Faculty of Applied Science gave an excellent speech from the perspective of students. He talked about why it was important to have these types of learning spaces and why they are especially appreciated on campus. A great speaker and definitely someone whose future is bright.

Andre Malan

The ceremony ended with a plaque unveiling followed by refreshments and guests were provided with a small bag containing a token of appreciation.

Gifts for Guests

It was a pleasure to meet Dr. Barber and I found him to be very approachable with students. As he wandered around after the ceremony I observed students talking with him, expressing their graditude for his contribution. I now have a greater knowledge of Irving K. Barber and the origins of the Learning Centre that bears his name.

[update] Photos are available as a set on Flickr here. If you use them, please attribute and link to fadetoplay.com

Relevance: UBC recognises the future of learning (informal, collaborative, mobile) intermixed with traditional (classrooms, project room, seminar rooms) spaces for learning and study.

First floor, Irving K. Barber Learning Centre