Getting closer to Dal's 200th

Preparations well underway for Dal's bicentennial in 2018

- July 7, 2016

In the busy academic environment, an event that’s a year a half away can sometimes seem like the distant future.

But not all events are 200 years in the making.

That’s why next year and a half is going to be full activity in preparation for Dal’s bicentennial anniversary in 2018 — and there’s a lot already on the go.

“We’ve seen such incredible enthusiasm from across the Dal community,” says Catherine Bagnell Styles, assistant vice-president of Communications and Marketing and member of the 200th anniversary steering committee. “Six faculties and a number of units have already submitted their 200th anniversary plans and while we can’t yet share all the details, the plans are really impressive. It’s going to be a truly special year.”

Among the efforts underway is the previously-announced Dal Originals project. Its working group — a committee of faculty, staff and the president of the Association of Dalhousie Retirees and Pensioners — has reviewed more than 200 submissions to select the 52 profiles that will be featured during 2018. Dal Originals will launch in January 2018 with a new profile being ‘unveiled’ each week throughout 2018.

Events and celebrations


In addition to Dal Originals, some of the activities taking shape for Dal’s 200th include special exhibitions at the Dalhousie Art Gallery, a special 200th anniversary composition from students in the Fountain School of Performing Arts, a spectacular homecoming celebration and the commissioning of a new university mace.

Last week, almost 100 faculty and staff in Halifax and Truro got a sneak peek of some of the communications pieces being developed including print materials, 200th logo and promotional materials. The 200th anniversary website is being developed and will launch in early 2017.

On the faculty side, in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences the Department of English (under the coordination of Creative Writing faculty member Shauntay Grant) has connected with George Elliott Clarke, Dal grad and Canada’s Parliamentary Poet Laureate. He’s agreed to pen a poem in honour of Dal’s 200th — one that will be translated into several different languages. The 200th will also be extra celebratory in Dal’s Faculty of Medicine, which will be marking its 150th anniversary in 2018.

And, of course, there will be a number of significant special events and initiatives extending through the year, both on- and off-campus, including community activities, conferences, public talks and lectures and prominent building openings such as Dal’s new fitness centre.

To keep up with everything going on, or to find out how to get involved, visit the planning website for Dal’s 200th, which includes a new RSS feed you can subscribe to for updates.


Comments

All comments require a name and email address. You may also choose to log-in using your preferred social network or register with Disqus, the software we use for our commenting system. Join the conversation, but keep it clean, stay on the topic and be brief. Read comments policy.

comments powered by Disqus