Students and staff at Taylor University have become accustomed to seeing the bones of new buildings. Many improvements at Taylor University are expected in 2024.
Some projects are already completed, including a new deli restaurant in the library, a renovated interior of the dining commons and a fresh food option in the student center. Chick-fil-A also completed renovations on Feb 14.
Taylor is still in the process of constructing new townhomes, finishing the exterior portion of the dining commons, renovating the Nussbaum Science Center in preparation for the nursing program and completing the Horne Academic Center for their esteemed film and media department.
Ron Sutherland, special assistant to the president, said the school is also looking to carry out renovations to Reade Avenue.
Skip Trudeau, vice president for Student Development, said the synchroneity among the seemingly endless amount of projects has been the most notable obstacle.
Sutherland also explained that while each project comes with its unique challenges, the university expected this. Despite these challenges, Taylor believes in the work they are doing, Trudeau said.
“I hope students can get a sense that the university is investing in the future of the programs that attracted them to attend TU,” Trudeau said.
While the physical buildings are new to the campus, the ideas that brought them about have existed for years.
Sutherland said the design process consists of the schematic phase, the design document phase and the construction document phase. The buildings on campus started out as sketches, which were then defined by specific measurements and layouts. There are hundreds of documents and hours of planning behind every project.
The Horne Academic Center, for example, is one of Taylor’s most complex projects, he said.
“The idea for the building started 14 years ago,” Sutherland said. “We have looked at probably a dozen different locations and buildings over the 14 years.”
The school is also expecting to cut the ribbons on their other projects this year.
Sutherland expects the Horne Academic Center to be completed by July 1, Nussbaum by Aug. 1, the first three residential villages by July 25, the last two by Aug. 10 and the Reade Avenue renovations by the end of the summer.
Freshman Kayla Gerry lives in English Hall near the townhome construction site. She said she is mostly excited for when the townhomes are finished and more people are on the south side of campus.
“English is kind of far from the rest of campus,” Gerry said. “It’ll be nice to have more people around and just to have more housing because Taylor is getting big.”
Taylor University is growing, anticipating to welcome its largest freshman class in the school’s history this fall.
“These projects convey institutional health and viability,” Trudeau said. “We are building and renovating because our programs are thriving.”
