TRU delays decision on Williams Lake campus closure until June
Published 9:25 am Monday, March 30, 2026
A decision on whether or not to close Williams Lake’s Thompson Rivers University (TRU) campus has been postponed until at least June.
On Friday, March 27, the TRU Board of Governors approved two of three decisions by President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Airini, which she said are designed to reimagine post-secondary education in the Cariboo-Chilcotin. This included directing administration to launch planning from 2026 to 2028 to reimagine post-secondary education in the region, with a first report to the board in June 2026 on project scope, governance, communications, engagement plan and initial scenarios.
The board also approved administration to support consultation with TRU’s senate on the closure and disposal of the grounds and facilities at the Williams Lake campus, with an initial engagement report by June 2026.
Chancellor DeDe DeRose’s motion to postpone making a decision on approving the full closure and disposal of the grounds and facilities by spring 2028, until the board has received both reports in June 2026, was approved.
“I have taught in that building for three years early in my career. I’m a Williams Lake kid and very passionate about the programs offered in Williams Lake and area,” DeRose shared. “I really want to make sure that the board has all the information before us before we make a decision.”
DeRose added she has attended commencement ceremonies at the TRU Williams Lake campus, where seven members from her community of the Esk’etemc First Nation crossed the stage last year.
“I know that they wouldn’t have had they not had the opportunity of having the building there,” DeRose said, tearing up and becoming emotional. “I’m trying really hard to not be attached to a building understanding there is going to be programming but when you have more people cross the stage from your community at graduation it really speaks loudly to the passion of the staff and the community, and the building, so I want our board to be very careful to do the right thing for the Cariboo Chilcotin community.”
Dancing Water Sandy, a Williams Lake First Nation councillor and vice principal of Indigenous education with School District 27, agreed with DeRose.
“This facility, this building, this community, it’s very important to all of us to have a space to learn together, to gather our resources, to gather our wits, to really connect,” Sandy said. “My fear is, by the dispersal of programming to several locations instead of a local location, that the opportunity will fall by the wayside, and as Indigenous people, we flourish when we’re connected.”
Sandy said she is hopeful the postponement will allow the board to further explore creating different ways of learning and hopefully come up with a good balance and opportunity, giving people such as the Dakelh and Tsilhqot’in an opportunity to share in the experience and come together.
Thompson Rivers University, according to Dr. Airini, is facing unprecedented financial challenges, not unlike many other post-secondary institutions at this time.
Prior to the Board of Governors public board meeting on Friday, March 27, Cariboo Chilcotin MLA Lorne Doerkson shared a video on Facebook and said he had a robust conversation with Dr. Arini and was shocked to learn TRU is losing approximately $12,500 each day of operations at the Williams Lake campus.
He called the financial headwinds being faced by TRU “severe”, with new rules on foreign students by the federal government, serious challenges by the provincial government stepping in and enrollment that has declined by 24 per cent.
“Dr. Airini has made it clear to me that they want to operate in our community, but they have to go through this process in order to engage, and when that engagement happens, it’s going to be fast, and it will potentially be a couple of years,” Doerkson said. “So we have an opportunity to build something here more financially sound, but it’s going to take engagement by all of us, and I really hope that Thompson Rivers is committed to this.”
Doerkson added he stands with Williams Lake Mayor Surinderpal Rathor to work very hard to protect the facility.
In an interview with the Tribune, Mayor Rathor said the city was “blindsided” by the proposal when they heard about it for the first time on Thursday, March 26.
Rathor said there are still a lot of questions that need to be answered regarding the potential closure, and that the city will keep fighting to keep the campus open.
“I’m trying my best. (The community) should come on board. Write a letter on why TRU should not shut down our Williams Lake campus, why it is important, why we need it. Write a letter to the premier, write a letter to the Member of Parliament,” he added, thanking DeRose for standing up for Williams Lake.
(Editor’s Note: Dr. Airini is the President and Vice-Chanellor of TRU’s Board of Governors. DeDe DeRose is Chancellor.)