History

On November 17, 1913 citizens filled the hallways of a new college building for the official opening of the Vermilion School of Agriculture. That day we became the third post-secondary institution in Alberta.

Our history started earlier. The Vermilion Board of Trade lobbied the provincial government for an agricultural school. Eventually Vermilion was named a demonstration farm location in 1911. Then, it was selected as one of three schools of agriculture.

Hands-on was how we started, and we continue to be home to the most hands-on education in Canada.

Over time the college has weathered closure during the flu epidemic of 1918, tough economic times in the late 1920s and the Great Depression, and during WW2.

We've had 4 name changes:

• Vermilion School of Agriculture
• Vermilion Agricultural & Vocational College (1963)
• Vermilion College (1970)
• Lakeland College (1975)

But our motto - Ever to Excel - has been the same since 1928.

Striving to excel has been the underpinning of survival for a small college in a rural area. It's meant being responsive to the needs of the community, region and industry.

While agricultural training has remained a foundation — today Lakeland offers diverse programming from environmental sciences to power engineering, early learning and child care to business, interior design to esthetics, and fire and emergency services to university transfer.