Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

University of Illinois Breaks Ground on $105M Business School

  • By Matt Jones
  • 04/20/23

The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in Champaign, Ill., recently broke ground on a new facility for the Gies College of Business, according to local news. Wymer Hall, named after alumnus Steven S. Wymer—who donated $25 million towards the building’s construction—will measure in at 100,000 square feet and will cost an estimated $105 million. The building is scheduled for completion by the end of 2024, local news reports.

According to the university website, the hybrid educational facility will play home to collaboration spaces, flexible and traditional classrooms, informal learning spaces, content creation studios, and administrative space. Its expanded studio spaces and recording facilities will ease the creation of online courses and programs for the entire campus.

“The future of business education will include online, residential, and hybrid learning,” said Jeffrey R. Brown, business professor, in a news release. This new facility is designed for the future and with that vision in mind. Even what we think of as ‘traditional’ classrooms will be able to support all types of learning and that’s going to enable us to deliver a powerful education in exciting new ways.”

Amenities will include a 200-seat auditorium, two 80-seat classrooms, and four 60-seat classrooms; two sound stages five black-box studios, and six control booths; 18 meeting and collaboration spaces; and 84 office spaces, according to the university website.

The university partnered with LMN Architects and Booth Hansen for the project’s design.

About the Author

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

Featured

  • Opportunity by Design Framework

    Opportunity by Design

    Educational improvement efforts often focus on curriculum, instruction, assessment, professional development, and intervention systems while treating the physical school building as background. But school design is not a passive backdrop to learning — it is a structural lever for equity.

  • Secret to Efficient, On-Time School Infrastructure & Modernization Projects is All in the Preparation

    Warmer weather and longer days make summer the ideal time for construction and modernization projects at educational facilities. School boards and construction firms must coordinate effectively to ensure that these projects do not extend even a single day into the school year and impede classroom operation.

  • Higher Ed is Betting on New Buildings While Quietly Undermining Their Campuses — Here’s Why

    In this climate, the owner’s representative has changed from a delivery-focused advisor to a strategic campus partner. Institutions are increasingly relying on owner’s reps not just to manage, cope, schedule, and budget, but also help evaluate whether a project should proceed at all.

  • Missouri Child Development Center Completes $2.3M Expansion

    The Urban Sprouts Child Development Center in St. Louis, Mo., recently announced the completion of a $2.3-million expansion and adaptive reuse project, according to a news release. The new space includes a retail café, outdoor learning space, and a support office building.