Southwest Indiana Colleges Expand to Keep Pace with Enrollments
Published Apr 16, 2007
The average class size at the University of Evansville is 18 students. The private university is affiliated with the United Methodist Church.
As job opportunities continue to grow in Southwest Indiana, so does the demand for higher education.
The evidence is already here.
The University of Southern Indiana in Evansville has seen an enrollment increase of 30 percent over the last five years – and the university is expanding its facilities to keep up with the 10,000-and-growing student population.
The newest building is the 155,000-square-foot, $30 million David L. Rice Library, completed in spring 2006.
“We are working on the designs of a new fitness center and have just completed $1.6 million in landscaping,” says Mark Rozewski, vice president for business affairs. “We have architects working on plans for a $30 million business school, with construction scheduled to start in 2008.”
The old USI library will be converted into a new student center, with bids for its design scheduled to go out in spring 2007.
The private University of Evansville has about 2,700 students, and its numbers are also on the rise.
Work began in July 2006 on the first of two phases of new construction for the Schroeder Family School of Business Administration building.
Completion of this new classroom facility is set for March 2007, says Bob Clark, dean of the business school and vice president for strategic initiatives.
“Phase II is the renovation of our current student center,” Clark says. “As part of Phase II, we plan to create a new university center to include a dining hall, bookstore and lecture series forum.”
The total price tag on the renovations is expected to be about $11 million.
UE also plans to offer an executive-style master of business administration degree beginning in March 2007.
Evansville’s community college, Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana, has grown from 4,100 students in 2000 to about 5,000 in 2006 – growth that’s attributed, in part, to a host of new programs.
The school recently completed a two-phase, $38 million improvement and expansion plan, says Jenny Nagy, executive director of marketing and communications.
Phase I, dedicated in April 2005, provided new laboratory, classroom and office space.
Phase II – to be dedicated in April 2007 – provides 65,000 square feet of additional space to be used for distance learning, new library space, a tiered, 300-seat auditorium and additional student common areas.
“In the last six months, we have also added new curricula such as hospitality management, public safety, elementary education, pre-engineering, library technical assistance and garden design,” Nagy says.
Story by Pam Sherborne
Photo by Brian McCord
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