The spectacular new academic building that we have been anticipating will have its grand opening in the fall 2012 semester. Professor Tom DelGiudice, the Director of Capital Planning, recently told the Catalyst about the new academic building, the current Academic Village, and other planned projects.
One of the problems with the current Academic Village, Professor DelGiudice states, is that there is plenty of “under-utilized space,” or rooms that are occasionally unoccupied, and therefore not used their greatest potential. In the new academic building, however, space is to be utilized for reasons more than classroom availability. Not only are there 40 brand new classrooms , but they are smart rooms with up-to-date technology. Additionally, out of the nine computer labs in this new building, five will be for “general purposes,” while the other four will be exclusive for specific programs for teacher education and business majors.
“Academics and faculty will be moved into [the new building],” according to DelGiudice.
This facility will not only provide Old Westbury with a new learning atmosphere, it will also have two lounges available for students during their breaks. The first floor lounge will have a Dunkin’ Donuts, due to popular demand from our student body. Wi-Fi access will be available in the lounges, along with the rest of the building. The nice view coming from these two lounges is definitely nothing to complain about.
With the long-standing Academic Village deteriorating, DelGiudice said that it is “difficult to renovate.” Mending all of its faults over time would eventually add costs, causing a “black hole for money.” The new academic building is the more cost-efficient choice, as it is highly likely that major repairs and renovations will not be necessary in this high-quality building for quite some time.
What is happening with the AV? Professor DelGiudice “[anticipates] faculty in the new building by early summer,” to start. “We are abandoning the B, C, and D buildings, and A will still be occupied for [specific math classes],” with the hopeful plan of abandoning the A wing in two years. All of the AV residential halls will stay standing for the time being.
“We are looking to demolish [at least] the B, C, and D wings for now,” Professor DelGiudice states. After demolition of the AV, DelGiudice says the college wants to give our campus a scenic meadow in its place, although this proposal is not yet set in stone.
Something that much of the SUNY Old Westbury community still doesn’t know is that over the next decade, there are many other construction projects planned to enrich our campus. During the upcoming summer, minor projects across the Campus Center will be completed, including a new elevator and new replaced windows and paneling.
DelGiudice reveals that the next anticipated renovation is the library “to be completed in one to two years,” if the proposed bid is approved.. His plans for improvement include “compressed study areas, and specialized group rooms with multimedia,” which will give students a better environment for studying. Library navigation will also be made simpler.
Not only will the Campus Center feature a new library and improved minor projects, but “down the road,” the plan is to build a completely new, separate facility for our daycare center. DelGiudice also said that later in the 10 year renovation plan, he plans to propose an entirely transformed E wing: this would be for “advising, the honors program, and more.”
There is also an idea of expanding and reforming the café. On top of all of this, the Campus Center will be renovated as a whole, “like a new building,” topped with solar panels.
The main purpose for all of these projects over the next decade, Professor DelGiudice says, is to give students, faculty, and administrators a more typical college environment. Bringing “everything close together,” with the “meadow behind the campus center [becoming] like a quad,” or central point to the campus, which will definitely help create an environment students are looking for. The new academic building is only the beginning.