Meetings with representatives of the local high schools, the health region, the business community, Parkland Regional College, and university alumni were all on the agenda for a densely-packed President's Tour visit to Yorkton from the University of Saskatchewan last Wednesday.
Members of the university's leadership spend several days each year touring communities around the province on the President's Tour.
"We try to make as much use of the time that we have in the community as possible," said Heather Magotiaux, U of S vice-president for university advancement, at the midpoint of her long day in Yorkton.
One notable omission on the President's Tour was a president. University head Peter MacKinnon was detained the night before the trip on emergency business, requiring Magotiaux to take his place. Magotiaux spoke for MacKinnon at the day's public functions: a Chamber of Commerce Luncheon at the Painted Hand Casino and an Alumni and Friend's Reception at the Gallagher Centre.
In her addresses, the vice-president discussed the history of the university, its progress over the last decade, some of its more noteworthy connections to the Yorkton area, and its future plans.
The most significant development currently underway at the university is the construction of a new $350 million Academic Health Sciences Building. The facility will eventually house research and instruction for nearly a dozen health science disciplines.
Dean of Medicine Dr. William Albritton was also among the university entourage. He met with officials from the Sunrise Health Region to discuss the university's distributed learning offerings.
Magotiaux hoped the visit would reinforce a message of the university's commitment to forming and maintaining partnerships such as those it shares with Parkland College and the Sunrise Health Region.
"It's one of the defining features of our university," she said. "And for us to be able to have strong partnerships means that we have to sit down face-to-face with people periodically and talk about what we want to accomplish, what you want to accomplish, and how we might work together to get both our needs met."
