{"488921":{"#nid":"488921","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Students to Vote on Student Center Renovation","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe Student Center is an integral part of all Yellow Jackets\u2019 Georgia Tech experience \u2014 from their first moments as students during FASET orientation to their last as graduates during the President\u2019s Graduation Celebration.\u0026nbsp;For more than 40 years, the Student Center has been\u0026nbsp;the\u0026nbsp;central gathering place for the campus community where students, faculty, staff, and alumni gather for meetings, events, services, and fun.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBut after several decades of 24\/7 use, the time has come for a much-needed expansion and renovation. Here are a few reasons why:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EThe original building,\u0026nbsp;completed in 1970, was designed for a campus\u0026nbsp;of\u0026nbsp;7,000 students. Throughout the 1990s, several additions were built to accommodate the growing student population, which then reached 16,000. Now, with\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003E23,000\u003C\/strong\u003E\u0026nbsp;students and\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026nbsp;7,000\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/strong\u003Efaculty and staff members, the building\u0027s space is far short of\u0026nbsp;what is needed.\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAbout 17,000\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/strong\u003Epeople walk through the building every day.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EThe building had \u003Cstrong\u003E10,297\u0026nbsp;room reservations\u003C\/strong\u003E in 2015 alone.\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EThe national standard for student center space is 10 square feet per student, but the Georgia Tech Student Center has just \u003Cstrong\u003E6.5 square feet per student\u003C\/strong\u003E.\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EThe Student Center team conducts more than\u0026nbsp;100\u0026nbsp;programs each\u0026nbsp;year for the campus community \u2014 in addition to the hundreds of other campus events hosted within building.\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EThe building\u2019s mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems are original, and well beyond the normal life expectancy.\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EThe Student Center contains just\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026nbsp;six\u003C\/strong\u003E\u0026nbsp;office spaces to support\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003Emore than 400\u003C\/strong\u003E\u0026nbsp;student organizations on campus.\u003C\/li\u003E\u003C\/ul\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cGiven the current usage and consequential wear and tear on the Student Center, it\u0027s time to not just renovate or expand\u0026nbsp;the building, but also to think innovatively about how we can\u0026nbsp;provide the essential services this campus needs in a reimagined space; hence, the campaign to re(in)novate the Student Center,\u201d says Samantha Holloway, student chair of the Student Center Expansion Committee.\u0026nbsp;\u201cThe Student Center team already provides the best programs and services on campus; it is exciting to imagine what they could do in a high-caliber facility.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOver the past two years, the Student Center\u0026nbsp;has\u0026nbsp;polled and talked with students about what the role of a new building should be, and how they\u0027d like to see the building\u0026nbsp;renovated.\u0026nbsp;The research conducted shows that Georgia Tech students need more opportunities and places\u0026nbsp;to gather, recharge themselves, build friendships, collaborate with one another, and grow as involved leaders. The research also exposed the need to do more to take advantage of outdoor spaces, with services and facilities that create a \u201cfront porch feel\u201d and leverage Tech Green.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cStudents have expressed these needs several times over the past few years,\u201d says Interim Director of the Student Center Lindsay Bryant. \u201cMeeting the needs of our diverse and extraordinary student body means finding an innovative approach to facility space and services, and Georgia Tech has a tremendous opportunity to create the next great hub for campus community life.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe first step in moving the Student Center project forward\u0026nbsp;is to secure funding. Last week, the Student Government Association approved a resolution allowing the Student Center to hold a student body-wide vote to implement a new fee to fund part of the project. That fee would cover 50 percent of the project\u2019s proposed budget, with the remaining funds coming from the Institute, Auxiliary Services, and private donors.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThis type of funding scenario is not uncommon for projects like this,\u201d said Bryant. \u201cThe majority of student center expansions and renovations within the University System of Georgia are funded, at least in part, by students.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe proposed fee would not exceed $85 per semester and would be implemented once the new facilities are open for student use. Although this means that the students voting on the fee will not necessarily be the ones paying it or benefitting from the new facility as students, it is still important that the student body participates in the vote.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cNothing will catalyze this project like widespread student support,\u201c Holloway says. \u201cStudents like me who vote for the fee will be able to draw a sense of pride as alumni visiting the new facility, knowing we were instrumental in bringing this much-needed change to campus.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWith the announcement of the approved referendum, the Student Center will now begin the re(in)novation campaign of weekly events and activities to engage the student body in the project\u003Cstrong\u003E,\u003C\/strong\u003E with the student vote happening\u0026nbsp;from March 9\u201316. Additionally, weekly Behind-the-Scenes Tours of the building are being offered to the entire campus community to demonstrate firsthand some of the critical needs of the facility. The 45-minute tours depart from the Information Desk, located on the second floor, Tuesdays at 11:10 a.m.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAnyone interested in finding out more or getting involved in the project is encouraged to visit \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/studentcenter.gatech.edu\/explore\/reinnovation\/Pages\/default.aspx\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003Ewww.reinnovation.studentcenter.gatech.edu\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EAfter several decades of 24\/7 use, the time has come for a much-needed expansion and renovation of the Student Center.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"After several decades of 24\/7 use, the time has come for a much-needed expansion and renovation of the Student Center."}],"uid":"27164","created_gmt":"2016-01-25 09:41:34","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:20:27","author":"Rachael Pocklington","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2016-01-25T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2016-01-25T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"488911":{"id":"488911","type":"image","title":"Re(in)novate the Student Center Campaign","body":null,"created":"1453395600","gmt_created":"2016-01-21 17:00:00","changed":"1475895245","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:54:05","alt":"Re(in)novate the Student Center Campaign","file":{"fid":"204387","name":"referendum_main_web_flyer.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/referendum_main_web_flyer_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/referendum_main_web_flyer_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":964315,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/referendum_main_web_flyer_0.jpg?itok=MVLU_iRI"}}},"media_ids":["488911"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/studentcenter.gatech.edu\/explore\/reinnovation\/Pages\/default.aspx","title":"Student Center Re(in)novation"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"}],"keywords":[{"id":"10257","name":"campus services"},{"id":"1400","name":"Construction"},{"id":"172","name":"infrastructure"},{"id":"166964","name":"Re(in)novation"},{"id":"128181","name":"renovations"},{"id":"166965","name":"Student Center"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:kate.curnow@stucen.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EKate Curnow\u003C\/a\u003E \u003Cbr \/\u003ECommunication and Marketing Manager\u003Cbr \/\u003EStudent Center, Campus Services\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}