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A new look for the Campus Center
BY LEAH EASTEP
StatesSman Staff Writer
CHAD BUSCH / STATESMAN
Students gather to chat and do homework at the newly remodeled Solon Campus Center. The new floorpan gives the wedge a ‘living room’ atmosphere.
Where’s your favorite place on campus to sit down and have a cup of coffee while studying for your next class? Before you say the library or the coffee shop, consider the newly renovated Solon Campus Center (SCC).
This past summer, the SCC underwent a $560,000 transformation, and the result is a comfortable and convenient new area that’s open to everyone, from students to parents to staff members.
The renovations were made to create more individual office space for new hires and to “provide an environment that is welcoming to students and their families,” according to Julie Westlund, director of Career Services located in SCC.
“There is much more seating available,” said Beth Esselstrom, director of UMD’s Office of Admissions. “It has been transformed into a destination space rather than simply a hallway.”
The new lobby area, also known as the Wedge, has new floors, chairs, tables and couches that give the area a cozy “living room” feel.
Many of the services that SCC offers and how they are delivered have changed since the building admitwas built in 1995. The area needed an update to accommodate it all, according to Esselstrom.
“It’s colorful and open, and there are more power outlets now for laptops,” sophomore Amy Schmidt said. “It’s nice to have the Tutoring Center right next to a work space.”
The back of the Wedge has wireless internet with power outlets and countertops, and stools coming soon. A new reception desk for the Admissions Office at the front of the Wedge can help students with everything from finding classes to assistance with questions about admissions.
“UMD is on the front lines of competing with other schools for students,” Esselstrom said. “The focus is on improving appearance for prospective students and their families, and on utilizing the space better than ever before.”
Classroom No. 21, previously SCC 25, is mostly used by UMD’s Supportive Services Program. It has been moved to the back of the Wedge, almost directly across from the Tutoring Center.
“The classroom has almost the same square footage as before, but now we have furniture that is much more functional for interactive-based learning rather than lecture-based learning,” said Jill Strand, director of the Supportive Services Program.
“The Financial Aid Office is really nice now; they have a few new computers in there to help with understanding the online process of financial aid,” sophomore Michelle Kosmerl said. Sharon Witherspoon, supervisor of the Student Assistance Center in Solon Campus
Center, hopes that the new space will help “students study more and know exactly where they are when they walk into one of the offices.”
On Tuesday, Sept. 25, from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., there is an open house planned to celebrate the remodeling of Solon Campus Center.
Suzanna Cyr is at
cyrxx013@d.umn.edu
