Red River College

The forerunner to RRC, The Industrial Vocational Education Centre, was established in the mid-1930s by three Winnipeggers: R.J. Johns, T.O. Durin, and Otto Peters. The Centre provided evening programs to train unskilled and unemployed youths in various trades. The success of the Centre resulted in the federal government providing funding through the Department of Labour in 1938. A few of the first courses offered included carpentry, sheet metal, machine shop, needle trades, welding and forging, power engineering, and radio. By 1948 the centre was rebranded the Manitoba Technical Institute (MTI) and became the first public post-secondary vocational school in Manitoba. In 1950 the Central School of Practical Nurses transferred from St. Joseph's Hospital to MTI. Advisory committees formed from top executives from local businesses and industry helped keep MTI up to date with changing industrial and business practices. In 1963 the Notre Dame campus was built and the college name was once again changed this time to the Manitoba Institute of Technology (MIT). The name changes would continue with a change to "Red River Community College" in 1969 and eventually "Red River College" in 1998.