The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Royal seal of approval for new Highlands campus
Education: Princess meets students at opening
The Highlands’ new university campus got top marks from its chancellor, the Princess Royal on its official opening yesterday.
Princess Anne met a large contingent of students on a tour of the £50million Inverness College UHI complex before unveiling a plaque to mark the occasion.
Addressing an audience of several hundred students, UHI staff and local dignitaries, she said: “I hope you are all pleased with what you have achieved. It’s not cheap. It’s been a hugely interesting long-term project.
“I’m perfectly certain that this new facility will have a huge impact, not just on the generation here but on future generations across the Highlands and islands for the scope that it provides.
“It’s an innovative working and learning environment. Studying here will be one of the most motivating experiences for students anywhere.”
She had earlier viewed teaching demonstrations from further and higher education students.
The princess was given a warm reception and bouquets from two four-yearold Invernessians, Ewan Mackay and Oihane Nekula.
Celebrating the Royal visit and the significance of the big day, Diane Rawlinson, principal and chief executive at Inverness College UHI, said: “Going by the excellent student demonstrations we enjoyed today, it’s clear to see why it is the destination of choice for so many students across the Highlands, the rest of Scotland and beyond.”
Education Minister Alasdair Allan, who attended the ceremony, said: “The new campus is an impressive facility which will provide a range of exciting courses.”
The new venue welcomed its first students in August.
It is now home to around 6,500 students and offers 200 courses which cover almost 30 subjects.
The foundation day event concluded with a lecture from Skye-born writer andd irector Douglas Mackinnon, who has worked on TV blockbuster Dr Who.
He was as thrilled by the new complex as he was about his own double whammy this Christmas.
“It’s lovely to see such a magnificent facility opening in the Highlands. It’s the sort of place I’d have liked to have gone to when I was younger,” he said.
“It’s an innovative learning environment”
It was a very proud day
for theHighlands; the opening of the new £50million Inverness UHI complex celebrates another new and exciting chapter in education in the region.
As Princess Anne remarked: it’s not cheap, but the return on the investment for young people— and not so young people— now and in the future is worth its weight in gold.
It’s been some time coming and the expectations are high but the prospects are enormous creating one of the most innovative and creative learning spaces not just in Scotland but across the whole of the UK.
UHI is fast gaining a proud international reputation for its innovative approach to education.