Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Roanoke College Breaks Ground on New Science Center

  • By Matt Jones
  • 04/25/24

Roanoke College in Salem, Va., recently broke ground on the first phase of a new Science Center, according to a college news release. The three-phase project will transform three buildings on campus into a new STEM hub for academics and research. The first phase of construction entails the demolition of a 1970s-era auditorium building to make room for a $30-million academic building.

The news release reports that once the new facility is completed, it will play home to some of the school’s most popular degree programs and house about one-third of all courses on campus. Amenities will include lab space, interactive study spaces, collaboration space, and technology upgrades. The college partnered with architecture firm VMDO for the project’s design.

“Every future student, regardless of major will take science, technology, engineering and mathematics in that facility as part of their educational foundation,” said Bettie Sue Masters ‘59, a member of the science center advisory board. “The laboratories will provide modern educational instrumentation and infrastructure for STEM research to produce graduates who are highly competitive and in academia and industry.”

According to the school’s website, every student on campus will take at least three courses from programs housed in the Science Center, regardless of major. The project serves as the capstone of a 25-year Campus Journey that has seen a series of campus construction and renovation projects around campus.

The Science Center will play home to the college’s programs in actuarial science, biology, chemistry, computer science, data science, engineering science, environmental studies, mathematics, physics, and psychology, according to the Roanoke College website.

About the Author

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

Featured

  • Spaces4Learning Launches 2026 Education Design Showcase Awards

    Spaces4Learning has opened submissions for the 2026 Education Design Showcase! The awards program launched in 1999 with the goal of celebrating innovative, practical solutions in the planning, design, and construction of K–12 and higher-education facilities. EDS recognizes new developments that help achieve optimal learning environments, as well as the architecture firms that brought the ideas to life.

  • NWEA Report Recommends K–12 Natural Disaster Recovery Strategies

    The Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA), a K–12 assessment and research organization, recently announced the release of a new playbook for schools and communities recovering from extreme weather events, according to a news release.

  • concentric silhouettes of a human head

    How Physical Space Shapes the Mind: Designing for Better Learning Outcomes

    Research in environmental psychology and neuroscience increasingly suggests that the way a room is designed can influence memory, focus, or even a student's sense of belonging.

  • California K–12 District Completes Elementary School Campus Replacement

    The West Contra Costa Unified School District (WCCUSD) in Richmond, Calif., recently announced the completion of a replacement campus for Lake Elementary School, according to a news release. The school has capacity for 470 students between Transitional Kindergarten (TK) and sixth grade.