Final phase of renovation project begins
By Sarah McNamara
Staff Reporter

The last phase of a campus-wide renovation project is scheduled to begin this spring with extensive refurbishing to the buildings housing the psychology, physics and chemistry departments.

Phase three of the project will focus on expanding and modernizing the facilities in both Winton-Scott Hall and Sid W. Richardson Building, said Michael McCracken, dean of the College of Science and Engineering.

“The facilities are outdated, the furniture is becoming worn, there is a lack of space and there are no modern teaching devices,” McCracken said.

He said some of the most significant renovations call for additional teaching labs, a new ventilation system, an improved animal care facility and large purchases of state-of-the-art equipment.

McCracken said the first two phases of the project, which consisted of renovations to classrooms in the biology and geology departments, have already been completed.

He also said plans for the project began in 1999 when the university decided there were specific needs within the departments concerning the poor conditions of the facilities and equipment.

“There is no question it was time for renovations,” McCracken said. “We just needed to find the funding.”

The work is an integral part of a three-year classroom, studio and lab renovation that will cost $30 million, said Carol Campbell, vice chancellor of finance and business.

Campbell said the Board of Trustees determined that the need to renovate and equip particular academic facilities.

“Since it was doubtful that fund raising for this (project) would be successful, and the need was pressing, they decided to take $10 million a year for three years from unrestricted endowment in order to complete the work,” Campbell said.

Jim Weller, manager of the new construction and renovation program, said this last phase of the project is critical in terms of upgrading and updating the campus as a whole.

“These buildings haven’t been renovated significantly since they were built,” Weller said. “We need to provide better operating and working conditions, and we’re going to try to do that.”

McCracken said once the project is completed the facilities will provide students and faculty with experiences that are not available now in Winton-Scott Hall and Sid W. Richardson Building.

“The faculty will be able to teach more creatively and effectively,” McCracken said. “And the students are the real benefactors because they will be learning in an environment specifically designed to encourage and foster learning.”

Sarah McNamara