New names for buildings, units

January 9, 2009

Two buildings on campus now have new names.

The university's naming committee has approved changing the Right Honourable John G. Diefenbaker Centre to the Diefenbaker Building not only to make the name more manageable but also to recognize the multiple uses of the building. In addition to being home to the Right Honourable John G. Diefenbaker Centre for the Study of Canada, the building also houses the Centre for the Study of Co-operatives and the Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy.

According to information provided to the Board of Governors, the new name still pays tribute to the former prime minister but no longer implies the Diefenbaker centre is the building's only occupant.

The other change brings the name of the Commerce Building in line with the college that occupies it. In May 2007, the board approved changing what was the College of Commerce to The N. Murray Edwards School of Business, and the naming committee has now agreed to call what was the Commerce Building the Edwards School of Business Building. The new name affects the office wing and old classroom wing; the PotashCorp Centre remains unchanged.

The Facilities Management Division will handle installation of new signage for both buildings.

Another name change has been made within the Edwards School of Business. At its November meeting, University Council approved changing the name of the Department of Industrial Relations and Organizational Behaviour to the Department of Human Resources and Organizational Behaviour. The change reflects both the evolving academic field of human relations and the teaching and research interests of the department.

The name change came into effect Jan. 1.

Also effective Jan. 1, the Integrated Planning Office (IPO) became the office of Institutional Planning and Assessment (IPA). As part of the reorganization, the responsibilities of Institutional Analysis have been integrated into both the IPA office and the new office of Information Strategy and Analytics (ISA).