{"id":20,"date":"2025-03-24T13:24:43","date_gmt":"2025-03-24T17:24:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/?page_id=20"},"modified":"2026-01-26T15:15:20","modified_gmt":"2026-01-26T20:15:20","slug":"history","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/history\/","title":{"rendered":"History and Purpose"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<section class=\"w-screen px-6 cu-section cu-section--white ml-offset-center md:px-8 lg:px-14\">\n    <div class=\"space-y-6 cu-max-w-child-max  md:space-y-10 cu-prose-first-last\">\n\n        \n                    \n                    \n            \n    <div class=\"cu-wideimage relative flex items-center justify-center mx-auto px-8 overflow-hidden md:px-16 rounded-xl not-prose  my-6 md:my-12 first:mt-0 bg-opacity-50 bg-cover bg-cu-black-50 py-24 md:py-28 lg:py-36 xl:py-48\" style=\"background-image: url(https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/120\/2025\/03\/Adobe-Express-file-1600x700.jpg); background-position: 50% 50%;\">\n\n                    <div class=\"absolute top-0 w-full h-screen\" style=\"background-color:rgba(0,0,0,0.600);\"><\/div>\n        \n        <div class=\"relative z-[2] max-w-4xl w-full flex flex-col items-center gap-2 cu-wideimage-image cu-zero-first-last\">\n            <header class=\"mx-auto mb-6 text-center text-white cu-pageheader cu-component-updated cu-pageheader--center md:mb-12\">\n\n                                    <h1 class=\"cu-prose-first-last font-semibold mb-2 text-3xl md:text-4xl lg:text-5xl lg:leading-[3.5rem] cu-pageheader--center text-center mx-auto after:left-px\">\n                        History &amp; Purpose\n                    <\/h1>\n                \n                            <\/header>\n        <\/div>\n\n            <\/div>\n\n    \n\n    <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<p>Carleton University has a rich history rooted in community spirit and a commitment to accessible education. Established in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution was born out of a vision to provide opportunities for young people in Ottawa, many of whom were working to support themselves in the wake of the Great Depression. Unlike other Ontario universities, Carleton was founded as a non-denominational college, supported in part by charitable donations from the local community.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"w-screen px-6 cu-section cu-section--white ml-offset-center md:px-8 lg:px-14\">\n    <div class=\"space-y-6 cu-max-w-child-7xl  md:space-y-10 cu-prose-first-last\">\n\n        \n    <div class=\"cu-testimonial md:py-8\">\n        <div class=\"bg-cu-black-50 rounded-xl\">\n            <div class=\"flex flex-col-reverse md:pl-8 md:pr-12 md:flex-row items-center gap-5 mx-auto max-w-7xl md:gap-10 lg:gap-16 md:items-stretch\">\n                <div class=\"w-full md:-my-8 hidden md:block md:flex-[0_0_30%] bg-cu-black-25 rounded-lg bg-cover\" style=\"background-image: url(https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/120\/2025\/03\/Henry-Marshall-Tory-768x1015.jpg); background-position: 58% 0%; transform: scale(1);\"><\/div>\n                <div class=\"w-full px-6 py-6 md:max-w-none md:flex-auto md:px-0 md:py-16 lg:py-20\">\n\n                                            \n<div class=\"not-prose cu-quote cu-component-spacing\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em class=\"myprefix-text-italic\">&#8220;I learned very early the life lesson that it is people, not buildings, that make up an institution. And if we put our hearts to it we can do something worthwhile.&#8221;&nbsp;<\/em><br><br>&#8211; Henry Marshall Tory, Carleton University&#8217;s founding president<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n                    \n                <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n\n\n    <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"w-screen px-6 cu-section cu-section--white ml-offset-center md:px-8 lg:px-14\">\n    <div class=\"space-y-6 cu-max-w-child-5xl  md:space-y-10 cu-prose-first-last\">\n\n            <div class=\"cu-textmedia flex flex-col lg:flex-row-reverse mx-auto gap-6 md:gap-10 my-6 md:my-12 first:mt-0 max-w-5xl\">\n        <div class=\"justify-start cu-textmedia-content cu-prose-first-last\" style=\"flex: 0 0 100%;\">\n            <header class=\"font-light prose-xl cu-pageheader md:prose-2xl cu-component-updated cu-prose-first-last\">\n                                    <h2 class=\"cu-prose-first-last font-semibold !mt-2 mb-4 md:mb-6 relative after:absolute after:h-px after:bottom-0 after:bg-cu-red after:left-px text-2xl md:text-3xl lg:text-4xl lg:leading-[3rem] pb-4 after:w-8 text-cu-black-700 not-prose\">\n                        Founding\n                    <\/h2>\n                \n                                \n                            <\/header>\n\n                            \n\n<p>Carleton\u2019s journey began with night courses offered for academic credit at the High School of Commerce, now known as Glebe Collegiate Institute. A group of forward-thinking citizens, along with support from the federal government, worked to ensure students had the chance to build their careers following the economic hardships of the Depression and the demands of the Second World War. This commitment to education laid the foundation for what would become one of Canada\u2019s leading post-secondary institutions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On June 18, 1942, a pivotal moment in Carleton\u2019s history took place at the Fairmont Ch\u00e2teau Laurier. It was there that the Ottawa Association for the Advancement of Learning was established to oversee the operation of Carleton College. At the same meeting, the first board of governors was elected and Henry Marshall Tory \u2014 renowned for his role in founding the University of Alberta, the National Research Council and what would later become the University of British Columbia \u2014 was appointed Carleton\u2019s first president and chair of the board.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n                    <\/div>\n\n            <\/div>\n\n    <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"w-screen px-6 cu-section cu-section--white ml-offset-center md:px-8 lg:px-14\">\n    <div class=\"space-y-6 cu-max-w-child-5xl  md:space-y-10 cu-prose-first-last\">\n\n            <div class=\"cu-textmedia flex flex-col lg:flex-row-reverse mx-auto gap-6 md:gap-10 my-6 md:my-12 first:mt-0 max-w-5xl\">\n        <div class=\"justify-start cu-textmedia-content cu-prose-first-last\" style=\"flex: 0 0 60%;\">\n            <header class=\"font-light prose-xl cu-pageheader md:prose-2xl cu-component-updated cu-prose-first-last\">\n                                    <h2 class=\"cu-prose-first-last font-semibold !mt-2 mb-4 md:mb-6 relative after:absolute after:h-px after:bottom-0 after:bg-cu-red after:left-px text-2xl md:text-3xl lg:text-4xl lg:leading-[3rem] pb-4 after:w-8 text-cu-black-700 not-prose\">\n                        Today\n                    <\/h2>\n                \n                                \n                            <\/header>\n\n                            \n\n<p>From its modest beginnings, Carleton rapidly evolved into a leading research and teaching institution. Now situated on a scenic 100-acre campus between the Rideau River and Rideau Canal, it is home to more than 30,700 students and over 1,050 internationally recognized faculty driving groundbreaking research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Carleton has built a strong reputation in fields such as journalism, international affairs, engineering, architecture and high technology. Its interdisciplinary approach to education, combined with hands-on learning experiences and strategic partnerships with the federal government, other universities and industry leaders, continues to shape its identity as an institution committed to excellence and innovation. Carleton also boasts a global network of more than 188K alumni with over 45 international chapters, fostering connections and collaborations across industries and continents.<\/p>\n\n\n                    <\/div>\n\n                    <div class=\"cu-textmedia-bgimg flex-1 rounded-xl bg-no-repeat bg-cover \" style=\"background-image: url(https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/120\/2025\/03\/P_CarletonPhotography_ViewbookPhotoShoot2022_101421-14-768x1152.jpg); background-position: 50% 50%; transform: scale(1);\"><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n\n    <\/div>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Carleton University has a rich history rooted in community spirit and a commitment to accessible education. Established in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution was born out of a vision to provide opportunities for young people in Ottawa, many of whom were working to support themselves in the wake of the Great Depression. Unlike other [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_cu_dining_location_slug":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"cu_page_type":[14],"class_list":["post-20","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","cu_page_type-general"],"acf":{"cu_post_thumbnail":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/40"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":628,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20\/revisions\/628"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"cu_page_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_page_type?post=20"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}