Toronto - The University of Toronto is the recipient of $151 million from the federal and provincial governments through the Knowledge Infrastructure Program, UofT announced yesterday.

The investment will fund significant capital projects on all three campuses that will help educate Canadians in cutting edge sciences and technologies, serve as poles for economic innovation across the GTA and create up to 1600 new construction jobs.

The program is providing $70 million each to University of Toronto Mississauga (UTM) and University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC) to build an instructional and laboratory complexes on both campuses. In addition, UofT's St. George campus will receive $11 million to help build an Innovation Centre for the Canadian Mining Industry at its Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering.

"The University of Toronto differs from other institutions in the scale of its operations and the depth and breadth of our research excellence," UofT President David Naylor said today. "Both the University of Toronto Scarborough and University of Toronto Mississauga essentially function as regional universities and hubs for the development of the Eastern and Western GTA.

"This tremendous investment by the two levels of government speaks to the unique position of the University of Toronto regionally, provincially and nationally."

The instructional and laboratory complex at UTSC will be the first building in a new phase of development planned for the northwest area of the campus and will increase teaching and research space at UTSC by approximately 25 per cent. The facility will include classrooms, labs, study areas and offices as well as provide dynamic community gathering places, dramatically enhancing the student experience. The construction of the complex is expected to create 700 jobs.

At the University of Toronto Mississauga, the Complex will help the university accommodate increasing enrolment. It will include new auditoriums, lecture halls, classrooms, laboratory space and computer labs. This investment in UTM is expected to create 700 construction jobs.

At the St. George campus, joint federal-provincial funding of $11 million will be used towards the construction of a new, $20-million mining centre on the top floor of the Mining Building, a prominent 100-year-old heritage building located on College Street. The entire investment is expected to create 200 construction jobs.
The Centre will be a focal point for cutting edge research by UofT researchers, undergraduate and graduate students from the university's Mineral and Civil Engineering programs at the Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering. It will house research space for 27 graduate students and post-doctoral researchers.

The Centre will feature:

o A laboratory for visualization and data analysis that will include computers and software to facilitate research and collaborative projects with industry;

o An interdisciplinary design studio for 100 undergraduate and graduate students;

o A seminar room;

o Studio space for multi-disciplinary project-based research and learning; and

o A full range of green building features, including roof-top photovoltaic cells, energy-efficient lighting, water conservation, gray water capture and recycling measures.

"These investments have two important effects," said President Naylor. "They fund building projects with an immediate economic impact. More importantly, strengthening universities is a great investment in the long-term prosperity and creativity of our society."

The University of Toronto has assembled one of the strongest research and teaching faculties in North America, presenting top students at all levels with an intellectual environment unmatched in breadth and depth on any other Canadian campus.

U of T faculty co-author more research articles than their colleagues at any university in the US or Canada other than Harvard. As a measure of impact, U of T consistently ranks alongside the top five U.S. universities whose discoveries are most often cited by other researchers around the world. The U of T faculty are also widely recognized for their teaching strengths and commitment to graduate supervision.

U of T attracts undergraduate, graduate and professional program students from across Canada and abroad. Our students have unique opportunities to learn from top researchers. Off campus, they can enjoy the extraordinary amenities and attractions of the Toronto region, Canada's pre-eminent urban cluster. On campus, students are able to craft intimate learning communities within a unique undergraduate college system, participate in more than 1000 clubs and co-curricular activities, and compete on a wide variety of intra-mural and inter-collegiate sports teams.

Established in 1827, the University of Toronto today operates in downtown Toronto, Mississauga and Scarborough, as well as in ten renowned academic hospitals.