Dominican University College

The Dominican University College (French: Collège universitaire dominicain; formerly the Dominican College of Philosophy and Theology) is a bilingual Roman Catholic university in Ottawa, Ontario, offering civil and pontifical bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in philosophy and theology. It was founded in Ottawa, in 1900, modeled on the study centres of the Order of Preachers, as the centre of graduate studies for Canadian Dominicans.^[1]

Holding a civil university charter since 1967, the college is open to any person interested in philosophy and theology. In Ottawa, its Faculty of Philosophy and Faculty of Theology offer the full range of programs, from certificate to doctorate. The Institut de pastorale, located in Montreal, offers its degrees in pastoral studies. Since spring 2012, The college has become affiliated with Carleton University.^[2]

History

In 1260, forty-five years after the foundation of the Dominican Order by Dominique de Guzman, the studium generale was established, a model for a university specialised in philosophy and theology that will last centuries.

The building opened in 1899 as a Dominican convent and house of studies. Today the building houses the Dominican Monastery and the Dominican University College, which offers undergraduate and graduate studies in philosophy and theology. The Saint-Jean-Baptiste Priory has served St-Jean-Baptiste Parish since its foundation in 1899. The building, which features arched ceilings, stained glass in the church and library, and a Casavant Frères organ was included amongst other architecturally interesting and historically significant buildings in Doors Open Ottawa, held June 2 and 3, 2012.^[3]

In 1900, the Dominicans brought their school of theology to Ottawa, followed shortly by studies in philosophy in 1902. In 1967, a civil charter was granted by the Ontario Government, allowing the college to offer civil degrees in philosophy and theology.

Since then, the college has grown regularly, especially with the opening of English undergraduate programmes in philosophy in 1992 and in theology in 2003. The college offers English graduate degrees in philosophy since 1997, and will soon offer the same in theology.

Research

The faculty of the Department of Philosophy at the Dominican University College (D.U.C) have diverse research and wide-ranging research interests in the history of philosophy, metaphysics and modern philosophy.^[4]

The DUC, with its traditional origins in the House of Studies of the Friar Preachers of St. Dominic, is particularly well situated and established to promote advanced research studies in the history of philosophy. The medieval tradition, with its overarching synthesis in the philosophy and theology of St. Thomas Aquinas, requires a solid grounding in the ancient philosophies of Plato, Aristotle and the Neo-Platonists. The Department encourages and often conducts research in the original languages of the ancient authors. Faculty members are continually engaged in scholarly studies which demonstrate the relevance of ancient philosophy to understanding the modern world.

Equally, the classical traditions of early modern rationalism and empiricism provide important precedents for the understanding of modernity. Faculty members have engaged in the study of Descartes, Spinoza and Leibniz. The other great precedent for modernity is German Idealism, wherein the philosophies of Kant and Hegel provided the foundation for modern inquiries into epistemology, ethics, aesthetics, politics and jurisprudence. The college not only encourages the specialized study of individual philosophers in these traditions, but also promotes the articulation of significant connections between various philosophers and schools of thought. Speculative inquiry into the meaning of the philosophical tradition as a whole is a mode of reflection widely promoted by faculty members.

Student Association

The Students’ Association (AECDO) elects its representatives who sit on the boards of the Faculty of Philosophy and of the Faculty of Theology. It organizes and directs various activities (extracurricular, social justice committee, social gathering) pertaining to student life.

Academics

Dominican University College

Between them, the Faculty of Philosophy and Theology have about 80 full-time students each, for a total student body size of about 160.

Institut de pastorale des Dominicains

Saint Dominic

• L'Institut de pastorale des Dominicains in Montreal offers, in French, programs in pastoral or liturgical theology or in catechism, leading to university certificates, bachelor's and master's degrees.
• L'Institut was founded in 1960 in Montreal, Quebec by the Dominican Order during the construction of the Convent Saint-Albert-le-Grand. L'Institut partnered with the Dominican College in Ottawa and acquired university status in 1967.
• The Institute consists of 10 professors and two staff.
• The Director and registrar is Daniel Cadrin, o.p..
• The motto is C'est l'université à taille humaine (It is the University with a human dimension)

Partnership

Since 2012 the university is affiliated to Carleton University, Ottawa. It is a member of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada and of L'Association des collèges et universités de la francophonie canadienne, a network of academic institutions of the Canadian Francophonie.^[5]

See also

• Canadian government scientific research organizations
• Canadian industrial research and development organizations
• Canadian Interuniversity Sport
• Canadian university scientific research organizations
• Higher education in Ontario
• List of colleges and universities named after people
• List of Ontario Universities
• Ontario Student Assistance Program

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dominican University College.

• Official website
• Institut de pastorale website
• Canadian Dominicans
• University's Online Library Catalog

Coordinates: 45°24′40.02″N 75°42′32.92″W / 45.4111167°N 75.7091444°W / 45.4111167; -75.7091444