WINNIPEG, MB – The University of Winnipeg has officially opened its newest research centre. Housed on the second floor of historic Bryce Hall, the new Oral History Centre (OHC) is an innovative and interactive component of the H. Sanford Riley Centre for Canadian History.
“Our hope is that our Oral History Centre will become the benchmark for global innovation in oral history teaching, research, and collaborative community development,” said Dr. Alexander Freund, Co-director, OHC. “The Centre is a place where researchers, students, and members of the community come together to engage in the conversation of scholarship and promoting oral history as a means of democratizing history and working towards social justice.”
The Oral History Centre serves as a hub for faculty and students at the University of Winnipeg, for members of Winnipeg’s and Manitoba’s diverse communities, and for the broader national and global communities of oral history practitioners. The overall goal of the centre is to provide collaborative learning. This includes the practice and theory of oral history and widening the scope of research.
OHC and The University of Winnipeg Foundation have secured funding in excess of $2.0 million, has helped create one of the most unique centres of its kind in North America, if not the world.
OHC has already completed several community projects, including: the Intergenerational Effects of Residential Schools project,; United Food and Commercial Workers, Local 832; Winnipeg Roller Rink; Nelson McIntyre High School Student Oral History Project; Refugees in Manitoba since 1945; and Salvadoran Voices of Manitoba.
“The Oral History program is a prime example of UWinnipeg as a creative force in the community, where we encourage interaction, innovation, and increased access,” expressed Dr. Lloyd Axworthy, UWinnipeg President and Vice-Chancellor. “Bringing the personal accounts of community members into the historical record adds a unique academic dimension to our campus, where we encourage action in a variety of new creative spaces.”
The Riley Centre brings together associations and organizations committed to researching the history of Canada from its Indigenous and colonial times to the present. The Riley Centre forms the umbrella for Canada’s National History Society, which publishes the popular, national Beaver magazine. It also includes the new international Oral History Centre; the Chair in German-Canadian Studies; Chair in Mennonite Studies; the Plett Foundation; the H. Sanford Riley Fellowship in Canadian History; the Centre for the Teaching of Manitoba History; Centre for Rupert’s Land Studies; and Canadian Oral History Association. The H. Sanford Riley Fellowship in Canadian History is funded by a generous donation from Sandy Riley to UWinnipeg. For more information on the OHC and its projects, visit www.oralhistorycentre.ca.
