University of Maryland Opens New Residence Hall

  • By Matt Jones
  • 09/01/21

The University of Maryland in College Park, Md., has a new dorm on campus. Pyon-Chen Hall opened its doors in time for the fall semester to about 450 University Honors living-learning program students, as well as others. The 131,000-square-foot facility stands six stories and features single and double rooms.

According to the university website, the dorm is named after two trailblazing Asian-American students from the university’s past. Pyon Su was the first Korean student to earn a degree from a U.S. college or university, while Chunjen Constant Chen was the first Chinese student enrolled at the Maryland Agricultural College (UMD’s former name). The dorm is the first to open in the school’s new Heritage Community. A second dorm, Johnson-Whittle Hall, is set to open in 2022, and the community will also feature a new 70,000-square-foot dining hall.

Amenities include air conditioning; a central lounge space; private study rooms; private, unisex bathrooms; a multipurpose room; a 24-hour laundry facility; and a building kitchen. Each bedroom comes equipped with data jacks for telephone and computer use.

The Heritage Community project broke ground in summer 2019 and will span 15 years of both new dorm construction and the renovation of older dorms on campus.

“As we build new residence halls, we’re always looking to hear from students, to hear what they most need,” said Tracy Kiras, Resident Life assistant director for communications and marketing.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Enjoy Tax and Energy Savings with the Right Ceiling Solutions

    Thanks to recent innovations pairing mineral fiber ceiling panels with phase change material technology (PCM), architects, designers, facility managers, and other key players in construction and renovation projects are re-thinking the role ceilings play in supporting environmental objectives—especially energy savings.

  • PNSI Global Alliance Launches New Quality Assurance Certification

    PNSI Global Alliance, a network of technology integrators and service providers, recently introduced a new Quality Assurance Certification (QAC) for AV service and support, according to a press release. The two-day, interactive workshop QAC course is designed for Certified Solution Providers (CSPs) to provide them with the most up-to-date and advanced quality assurance knowledge available.

  • Active Learning Classroom

    Striking a Balance: The Keys to Renovating Science Education Buildings for the 21st Century

    The recent renovation of the Durham Science Center at the University of Nebraska-Omaha (UNO) provides a roadmap for facilities managers tasked with balancing budget constraints, modern pedagogical demands, and long-term sustainability.

  • a traditional red brick school building with the right side visibly deteriorated and the left side well-maintained, surrounded by neat landscaping

    Making the Grade: Navigating Funding Uncertainty in K-12 Schools

    School districts across the country must prepare for all possible funding scenarios by analyzing school asset and infrastructure conditions, understanding their funding needs, and developing a proactive maintenance strategy to stretch their funding dollars.

Digital Edition