History on the move

Trent's history department will be occupying some new geography this fall, with the move of several offices to Lady Eaton College.

Dale Standen, chair of the history department, says moving the offices of the chair, the departmental secretary and several other faculty members to Symons campus will provide the department with additional facilities.

Physical Resources Director Bernie Roth said the history department offices will go into renovated space previously occupied by the principal's lodge at Lady Eaton College. He predicted the move will be finished in time for the department to "be in full swing by September."

"We have the advantage of helping design the space," said Standen. "We will have room for facilities we have never had before, such as a resource seminar room and workshop areas." For a large department, with a busy schedule of faculty meetings, the meeting space will be a great addition, he said.

The move will put the largest concentration of history faculty at Eaton College, said Standen, but faculty members will continue to be located at all the colleges. "The departmental office is moving, but our operations remain the same."

The offices of the chair, of the departmental secretary, Carol Little, and those of Professors Carolyn Kay, Keith Walden, Doug McCalla and David Sheinin will all be moved, along with an office for the use of part time faculty. It will be a homecoming of sorts for Standen, who has been affiliated with LEC for 17 of the past 20 years.

Work teams are already busy building office, storage and seminar space, and there is also significant wiring and furnishing required.

This will be the first move in two decades for the history department. The departmental offices were located at Traill College from Trent's inception until 1980 when it moved to Peter Robinson College, where it has remained until now.

"We have had good space and good collegial relations at Robinson College," said Standen. "The move is precipitated by the Build 2000 project and comes on short notice. It will certainly be a big change. Partly it is a daunting task, given the complexity of moving, but there is also the excitement of anticipating new facilities and new teaching opportunities in another collegial environment."

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