Meredith
January 15, 2003
ERALD
Volume XViy, Issue 14
Science and Mathematics Building
Opens For Classes
As students begin
classes, Dr. Hartford
discusses Meredith’s
newest ctassroom
building.
CHRISTY
SADLER
EdItor-in-Chief
Perhaps the most antici
pated event of the last sever
al years at Meredith has
finally happened-the new
Science and Mathematics
Building is open for classes.
The facility, Meredith's
first new classroom build
ing since Ledford Hall was
constructed in 1993, opened
as scheduled on Wednesday
for the start of the spring
semester. The building,
designed by BJLAS
Architecture, LLC and buih
by Rodgers Builders, took
less than two years to com
plete from the time ground
was broken in April 2001.
The biology and health
science, chemistry and
physical science, and math
ematics and computer sci
ence departments are now
housed in the new facility,
which includes specialized
laboratory space for each
discipline.
"Meredith faculty and
administration have been
discussing this facility for
some time -1 know as early
as 1997 - but probably even
earlier than that," College
President Maureen Hartford
said. She said the need for
the project, which was offi
cially proposed in the
Initiative 2000 plan
approved by College
trustees in 1999, was clear.
"Part of the incentive for
the new building was the
age of the existing science
laboratories in Hunter,"
Hartford said. "Many of our
students were coming to
Meredith from high schools
with better labs."
Another incen
tive for the new
facility came
from the focus
on science,
mathematics
and computer
science the
College was tiy-
ing to adopt.
Hartford said
research showed
women were not
well represented
in these fields
and added that
"all of this put
together
encouraged us that a new
building would be the right
step for Meredith."
The new building is only
part of the new initiatives
adopted to support science,
math and computer science
at Meredith. The Meredith
Technology Initiative (MTI)
has provided laptops to all
incoming freshmen, upgrad
ed computer lab equipment,
increased technology sup
port staff and technology
training for faculty and stu
dents, and provided wireless
connectivity on campus.
Hartford also cited the
Undergraduate Research
Opportunities Program
(UROP) as another impor
tant component of these ini*
Students cross the atrium's tile floor, which was
designed by Meredith students and faculty.
Photo by Aundrea Hfldroth
tiatives. The initial phases
of the program, which pairs
students and faculty for aca
demic research, were spon
sored by the pharmaceutical
company GlaxoSmithKline.
According to Hartford,
this 80,000-square-foot
facility is comparable to
those of Meredith's peer
institutions. Davidson
College completed a $13
million, 42,000-square-foot
life sciences building in
1998 to supplement its
existing science facility, and
Hartford said that Columbia
College, an all-female insti
tution in South Carolina,
had recently completed a
new facility similar to
Meredith's. Elon University
opened the
8 1,000-
square-foot
Dalton L.
McMichael
Science
Center, simi
lar in size
and scope to
Meredith's
building, in
1998.
Hartford
said the
major source
of funding
for the new facility was a
tax-free state bond that pro
duced over $31 million. The
building is being touted as a
$20 million facility, with the
rest of the money going to
restore Hunter and Harris
and to purchase a new tele
phone switch and chiller
system. Haitford said the
bond is being paid off by the
college with tuition rev
enues.
Although the building is
now nearly complete, more
changes are in store for aca
demics on campus. The new
facility has created vacan
cies in Hunter and Harris,
which are leading to move
ment among departments
and offices ail over campus.
According to Hartford,
Hunter and Harris will be
renovated this year to create
"new and specifically
designed space" for the
business, human environ
mental sciences, communi
cation, and foreign lan
guage departments; the
Honors program; and the
Office of Study Abroad.
However, a specific time
line for any moves by these
See Building
Page 4
On the inside:
How will the new building
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