School’s highest enrollment to date required larger space for classes and labs
In 1961, the School for Graduate Nurses had the highest number of students in its history, a great milestone for the School, but a new problem with respect to classroom space at Beatty Hall, its premises at the time. It wasn’t the first time in the School’s history that space was an issue: with a sudden increase in student applications after World War II, the School moved to Beatty Hall in 1947 from its building on University Avenue, when that location could no longer support the growing number of students.
As early as 1955, School records show that Beatty Hall was not able to meet students’ needs: lack of space and a need for a nursing arts laboratory were two main issues. By the end of the 1950s, the School had introduced a Bachelor of Science (Nursing) degree, and in 1961, it established the Master of Science (Applied). Partly because of these new programs, the School registered 223 students in September of 1961. Once again, it looked like a move would be necessary.
The space problem at Beatty Hall was summed up well in this description of the cloakroom: “Foot-gear cannot be worn in class because of the carpets and polished floors and there is not sufficient space to store overshoes once they are detached from the owners’ feet. It is surprising how much space 200 pairs of overshoes can occupy if they are to be in any kind of orderly arrangement for the blitz between nursing classes and campus courses…we have high hopes of moving to Wilson Hall down on University Street.”
In 1963, those “high hopes” became reality when the School moved to Wilson Hall. It remained at this address until 2017 when it moved to its current location at 680 Sherbrooke St. W.