The glass, steel and brick structure stands at Euclid Avenue and East 21st Street as a shiny, new example of the modern student center that students want to see when visiting colleges.
The building at Cleveland State University opens at the end of August as a place where students can meet, grab a bite to eat, study or relax, said Sandra Emerick, associate dean of students at Cleveland State. It's really up to the students to make the building their home away from home, she said.
They can stay between classes or as long as they want by using the student lounge, computer center, café, game room, terraces and fireplaces - all of which have views of downtown Cleveland, she said.
The new center is immensely different from the concrete-laden student union that once occupied the same lot, Ms. Emerick said. With plenty of windows and a front entrance on Euclid Avenue, the new center opens up to the city, rather than enclosing itself within the campus, she said.
It's a testament to how much times have changed on college campuses, which in recent years have competed against one another to offer more and more previously unheard of amenities to prospective students.
In another example, the University of Akron's campus has undergone a transformation that includes a new student union housing various dining options, student offices, a ballroom, theater, game room and retail services such as a copy center and a bank.
Case Western Reserve University also is raising money to build a $50 million center that will serve as a gathering place, which students have been advocating for years.
Students now gather at the aging Thwing Center, which houses the bookstore, student offices and restaurant. The college in May received a $20 million gift from Tinkham Veale II, a 1937 graduate of the Case Institute of Technology. The new building will be named the Tinkham Veale University Center.
'All about the experience'
Though expensive, student unions are an important part of the university experience that students are anticipating when choosing a college, said Rick Bischoff, vice president for enrollment management at CWRU.
Students and parents, particularly given the relatively large investment they are making in higher education, are looking at quality of life issues, he said. Kids want to know, 'Am I going to come and have plans? Am I going to make friends?'
Students are looking for an emotional reaction to a college campus; they want to feel at home, Mr. Bischoff said. That's why so many colleges across the country are spending money on nonacademic bells and whistles, he added.
Universities today are paying much more attention to what students' nonacademic life is like, and I think that's good, Mr. Bischoff said.
Among the most important features that students want to see on campus are a comfortable place to gather, food around the clock and access to technology, said Trina Dobberstein, vice president of student affairs and dean of students at Baldwin-Wallace College.
It's very clear to students and families that college choice is all about the experience ? and we need to be mindful of that, she said.
Cleveland State wanted to build a center that appealed to today's students, so they relied on the student body to design the center around their demands, Ms. Emerick said. Surprisingly, students didn't ask for amenities such as a nail salon or a bank, they wanted gathering places, a ballroom and performance spaces, she said.
Students are looking for opportunities to congregate with other students, she added.
Making due
Baldwin-Wallace over the years has renovated its student center to roll with changes in student demand. The center once had a bowling alley, but that was replaced with a cyber café with TVs, snacks and drinks, Ms. Dobberstein said. The game room, which likely had an array of
recreational activities in the past, now only has pool tables.
While the private
college has done what it can with the current space, she said administrators are weighing
building a new student center with more windows and current amenities. Another possibility is adding a wing to the center and connecting it with the student activity center, which was converted from an old women's gym, she said.
Our building, which is a little old and dated, is not the most appealing building, Ms. Dobberstein said.
However, she said planning for the student union would be at least a year out and Baldwin-Wallace would have to raise money for the project before breaking ground.
Kent State University is mindful of students' need to come together and, although it isn't building a huge new student center, it is investing $3.3 million to renovate its outdoor Risman Plaza to include lawn space, trees, landscaping and more outdoor seating, which is a far cry from the former plaza consisting largely of concrete and a 1970s-era water fountain. The plaza will be finished this fall.
Notre Dame College, meanwhile, has added student activities such as yoga and wellness classes across campus to make up for its lack of a student union, said David A. Armstrong, vice president of enrollment at the private college.
We've been able to do all that without a big building that costs a lot of money, although we would love to have that some day, he said.
Overall, universities are willing to give students what they want if it will help their recruiting efforts, Ms. Emerick said.
It's not just about strong academics, she said. We also want to tell the students they are important to the community.
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