Red Deer College is making changes to improve the lives of business students on campus. The Donald School of Business located downtown Red Deer at the Millennium Centre will be moving programs to the school’s main campus by January of 2021. The change was made to give students in those programs a more traditional post-secondary experience 

“What drove the decision was a number of things we’ve heard that they would like a more fulsome student experience and those at the DSB felt in some ways that weren’t coming into fruition at their location downtown. This is not about what was going badly but rather enhancing the overall student experience for all of our college students,” said RDC President, Dr. Peter Nunoda. 

Many of the business students who attended the DSB were between the ages of 18 and 20 who desired more involvement with some of the activities and programs featured at the main campus. 

“Those students particularly are looking for the full college experience it includes participation and recreational activities and those sorts of things that we tried to provide at the DSB but the matter of distance is a challenge. To bring them back to the main campus really builds on this signature student experience that we want to provide for all RDC students,” said Nunoda. 

Dr. Nunoda confirmed the move was not due to the provincial budget or in response to the current pandemic.  

“We’re not giving up space in the Millennium Centre at this point in time. The finance picture looks more or less the same. Can we provide services potentially to the DSB students more easily on the main campus? I think so, but it wasn’t finances that really drove the decision,” explained Nunoda.

With the pandemic underway, Nunoda believes it will make the transition a bit easier for the college as many students take their classes online for the coming fall semester. 

The Millennium Centre will still house students of RDC but will house continuing education programs. Corporate training will also be offered in the Millennium Centre as it is centrally located and in the heart of Red Deer. English as a second language students may also use the space but may still have to make use of the labs located at main campus. The majority of the students that will be making use of the building are a bit older and may not have the same desires as the DSB students. 

“This is not an abandonment of our presence downtown. We’re shifting the Donald School of Business to the main campus and at the same time moving our continuing education division downtown because we believe that the types of training that the corporate side offers matches very well to the needs of the downtown business owners and potentially other clients that are there,” explained Nunoda. 

At the main campus, the Donald School of Business will be given a dedicated space but for now, the space has not yet been configured. Dr. Nunoda believes the integration of the DSB will be great all students of main campus. 

“We think that there are obvious synergies between the DSB and other programs that we have on the main campus. We’re looking forward to having the expertise that we have there playing with trades and technology, for example, or arts and sciences, or education and health sciences,” added Nunoda.

Overall, Nunoda says the change has been widely supported by students and contributors alike. With the move, RDC will also be developing even more programs for the DSB including a bachelor’s of business administration degree as well as other developments. 

“We’re looking at the entire spectrum of business courses entrepreneurial activity and how does that connect potentially to the research that we might want to do. How can we embed entrepreneurialism in all of our programs whether that’s trades and technology, or health sciences, or arts and sciences? I really think that cross-pollination is going to get easier with the DSB located in the main campus. At the same time, if there are opportunities for our students to participate in activities that need to happen downtown, because we’ve maintained our presence there, we have that space available for them to take advantage of,” explained Nunoda. 

The President hopes to bring RDC the highest form of education for his students to prepare them for an economic recovery that will inevitably be involved in the coming years. 

“The better we can deploy our programming to meet the needs of employers, I think the more successful we can be as contributors to that economic recovery,” added Nunoda.