UB’s ‘front door’ to get a facelift

UB’s Heart of the Campus project is underway and is ready to pump new life into one of the most vital spaces on the North Campus — the university’s “front door” at Capen, Talbert and Norton halls.

“The aspirational goal is that this is the pulse of the campus. This is the place where faculty, staff and students come to feel like they’re part of UB,” Kelly Hayes McAlonie, interim associate vice provost, Capital Planning Group, told members of the Professional Staff Senate at the group’s meeting Thursday in the Center for Tomorrow.

The idea is to break down walls and create more open, visually connected spaces that encourage collaborative learning. Another key aspect is the creation of a “concierge”-type approach toward student services; that is, bringing the offices students use most frequently into one space, eliminating the need to travel across campus.

“The way students learn has changed. There’s much more collaboration. This notion of the ‘sage on stage’ and individual assignments is really giving way to collaborative work and learning,” McAlonie said, adding that has created the need for spaces on campus that facilitate this type of learning.

“Same thing with services. There’s an expectation to be user-friendly — and rightfully so — and there’s a call around institutions to break down silos and be more collaborative in general. Instead of having departments in different locations, we have this notion of a one-stop, a concierge space for students, faculty and staff to engage and get the answers that they want.”

A UB 2020 initiative, Heart of the Campus will be implemented on each of UB’s three campuses. The project is starting at North because it’s the largest, at a cost of $7.9 million for phase 1, McAlonie said. Work already has begun on the third floor of Capen, which is now closed off as crews pull up old carpet and demolish walls to create open spaces.

“This is going to be a really exciting space. There will be a wonderful grand reading room that will be quiet for traditional study, in addition to a new and improved cybrary,” she said.

Construction will take place over the summer, with the new and improved third floor opening in winter 2016. On the ground floor of Capen, the plan is to create “a brand new space that’s inviting to prospective students and tells UB’s story. We’ll be working on updating the finishes and exteriors of the lobby of the admissions area,” McAlonie said.

As UB’s state funding has decreased, plans have had to be scaled back and the project will be completed in phases as funding becomes available. “We still fully intend to implement the entire project,” McAlonie said. “But we’re going to do it in a series of phases, similar to renovating your house. Instead of renovating it all at once, we’re going to do the kitchen first and then we’ll get to the bathroom and living room, et cetera.”

Under the direction of Provost Charles Zukoski, a capital planning committee has made recommendations on which projects to focus on. “They recommended that we focus on projects that would impact as many people as possible, and the one project that really would have a positive impact on everyone — students, faculty and staff — was Heart of the Campus,” McAlonie said. “As we continue to plan, the steering committee is working to develop the next phases so that however long it takes, the Heart of the Campus project will be realized.”

Phase 2 of Heart of the Campus on the North Campus would cost $5 million; the “one-stop” idea would be realized during this phase. UB has not yet secured funding for this part of the project.

For more information on Heart of the Campus, visit the project’s website.