The details
Construction on the Sherry and Jim Smith Engineering, Science and Nursing Complex is set to begin January 2025 and be completed in time for the start of the fall 2026 semester, according to a May 28 news release from the school.
The estimated 71,000-square-foot, three-story building will provide the campus' School of Nursing and College of Science and Engineering with a consolidated space for science laboratories, classrooms, instructional and simulation labs, makerspace learning environments, and faculty and administrative offices.
The construction of this building comes at a time of increased need to fill STEM-related and nursing jobs, per the release, and is meant to enable HCU to prepare students for "high-demand" professions, such as:
- Data science
- Statistics
- Cybersecurity
- Computer science
- Registered nursing
- Kinesiology
What they're saying
The new academic building is part of HCU’s Institutional Strategic Plan 2030. It will provide instructional spaces for students pursuing undergraduate- and graduate-level degrees in the STEM disciplines and contribute to HCU's goal to grow the student population to 10,000 by 2030, per the release.
Dr. Katie Evans, dean of the College of Science and Engineering, said the complex will provide students with critical learning experiences and "high quality" physical spaces to match HCU's faculty and curricula.
“The new building will not only provide excellent lab spaces for experimentation, but also the additional space creates the opportunity for HCU to transform existing spaces into active learning classrooms that will support high impact teaching and learning practices,” Evans said in a statement.
What else?
HCU offers a wide range of majors, undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degree programs and a NCAA Division I athletics in the Southland Conference.
