Published by Communications and Public Affairs 519 824-4120, Ext. 56982 or 53338

News Release

March 13, 2007

U of G Opens its Doors for 83rd College Royal Weekend

The University of Guelph’s College Royal weekend, the largest university open house event in North America, runs March 17 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and March 18 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. All events are free and open to the public.

This year’s theme is "A Tradition of Royal Excellence.” Since its inception in 1925 as an agricultural and livestock show run by the Ontario Agricultural College, College Royal has grown to be a celebrated U of G tradition involving all the colleges. It now usually attracts more than 30,000 visitors to campus over one weekend.

“During this year's College Royal we want to encourage visitors to share their favourite traditions with family and friends,” said Katharine Found, president of College Royal 2007 and second-year doctor of veterinary medicine student. “We also challenge visitors to discover new traditions by venturing to a display or attraction they’ve never been to before.”

The open house features traditional favourites such as the livestock show, a logging competition and dog and cat shows, as well as Old MacDonald’s new farm, a photography contest and a junior tractor rodeo. The weekend will also feature numerous displays and activities by student clubs and individual departments, a juried art show at Zavitz Hall, hands-on teddy bear surgery for kids at the Ontario Veterinary College, live entertainment and a chemistry magic show.

Also scheduled are a number of team events, including a flower-arranging competition, square-dancing competition, seeds and forages competition and pancake-flipping competition. In addition, a lecture series will run throughout the weekend, featuring talks on a variety of topics being studied at U of G.

A complete listing of College Royal events and activities is available online.