“As OSU alumni and Central Oregon homeowners, Connie and I are very committed to the success of OSU-Cascades,” said Lee Kearney, a retired executive of Kiewit Construction who also serves on the advisory board of the Oregon State College of Engineering, in a statement. “This sustainability initiative will provide a living laboratory for students and faculty interested in energy conservation and independence, and is very aligned with Central Oregon’s values.“

“This commitment marks a first significant step toward the creation of a campus that sets the standard for sustainability and net zero energy and resource use,” added OSU-Cascades Vice President Becky Johnson in a statement. “We are thrilled by the Kearneys’ visionary leadership and their commitment to higher education in Central Oregon. We are also deeply grateful that other Central Oregon leaders have pledged their support for this innovative vision of a sustainable future for OSU-Cascades.”

The university has also received a $75,000 gift from Rod and Laurie Ray to support the initiative. An OSU alumnus, Rod Ray also serves as a trustee of the OSU Foundation and is chair of the advisory board of the College of Engineering. Deschutes Brewery, a long-time supporter of the university, has committed a further $50,000 towards the initiative.

These gifts will support sustainable design approaches for the campus’s first academic building, reducing energy demand as much as possible, and installing monitoring equipment that will help to motivate energy saving behavior by building occupants, according to a statement by the university. Design and mechanical features made possible through these gifts include a highly efficient building envelope, the highest efficiency heating and cooling system, and functionality to incorporate solar, biomass and geothermal energy sources. These design features will result in approximately 40 percent less energy usage compared to similar structures built to meet current energy code standards.

“A sustainable campus isn’t just about going green,” said Matt Shinderman, a senior instructor in natural resources who leads the sustainability degree program at the branch campus and served as co-chair of the OSU-Cascades Campus Expansion Advisory Committee, in a statement. “It can also serve as a living laboratory for study and research, and attract students and faculty who care about energy and resource independence.”

The OSU-Cascades branch campus currently offers 18 undergraduate major programs, 30 minor programs and options, and three graduate programs. The branch campus plans to expand to a four-year university beginning in fall 2015.

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In an attempt to keep pace with rising enrollments — and to replace or upgrade aging or inadequate facilities — a number of Texas universities have developed plans for costly large-scale building projects and improvements. University leaders claim that, if funded, these projects will help attract new businesses and create new high-paying jobs, according to The Dallas Morning News.

A number of these funding requests are concentrated around the Dallas area. The University of Texas at Dallas will request $99 million for a new engineering building, plus another $95 million for a new science center, while the University of Texas at Arlington plans to request $190 million for the construction of the Science and Engineering Innovation Research Building, as well as an additional $99 million to establish a new College of Nursing and Allied Health Professions Academic and Research Building. The University of North Texas will seek a combined $152.8 million for construction of an interdisciplinary research building and a variety of renovations to the College of Law, both located on the university’s Fort Worth campus.

The University of North Texas at Denton is also hoping to secure more than $82 million for a new College of Visual Arts and Design facility, and more than $88 million for a new Science and Technology Research Building. Meanwhile the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and the University of North Texas at Dallas will seek $109.8 million and $70 million respectively. The former hopes to construct a new vivarium and complete research infrastructure improvements, while the latter hopes to add a new Student Learning and Success Center.

These high profile funding requests are not just limited to the Dallas area, however, and a number of other institutions will also petition for funding. Texas A&M University in College Station is requesting more than $170 million for construction of an advanced bio-containment lab, a new classroom facility and various improvements. Both the Round Rock and San Marcos campuses of Texas State University will also seek funding for new construction projects. All said, Texas universities will request more than $3 billion for nearly 90 projects, according to The Dallas Morning News.

Many of these universities will seek to complete work with the support of tuition revenue bonds, which were last approved by the state legislature in 2006. That year state lawmakers gave the green light to more than 60 university construction and improvement projects totaling more than $1.8 billion. In 2013 a similar effort went unfunded due to disagreements between the Texas House and Senate. Competition for funding will be similarly difficult in the coming session as the number of requests has increased.

“There will be money there, but there are a lot of competing interests — and worthwhile ones,” Senator and Chair of the Senate Higher Education Committee Kel Seliger (R-Amarillo) told The Dallas Morning News on Jan. 2.

The state legislature’s 84th session will commence Jan. 13 and the regular session will end June 1.

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"The Center for Performing Arts will increase Western’s educational offerings and provide Macomb with a state-of-the-art music, dance and theater production facility," Quinn said at the funding announcement. "This is an investment in the school’s future."


According to current plans, the $71.8 million CPA will feature a 1,400-seat proscenium theatre auditorium with two balconies, a 250-seat thrust stage and a more intimate 150-seat studio theatre. A number of spaces including dance, music and theatre rehearsal studios, a VIP area, green rooms, dressing rooms, a scenery design workshop, costume shop, box office and administrative offices will further support the performance art programs. The CPA design is also on target for LEED Silver certification.

"We are elated that Gov. Quinn has released the full funding for the construction of The Center for Performing Arts in Macomb," said WIU President Jack Thomas in a release. "We are excited about beginning construction on this new facility that will benefit our students, faculty and staff, as well as the region.”

"This is a moment that will change the history of the College of Fine Arts and Communication, Western Illinois University and arts across the region,” added Billy Clow, College of Fine Arts and Communication dean. “The CPA will provide an outstanding space for our students and faculty, and will serve as a cultural center for the region. We are…thankful to Gov. Quinn and the State of Illinois for their support for this landmark project.”

Work on the CPA is also anticipated to benefit the Macomb community and surrounding region. "The Center for Performing Arts project will create hundreds of construction jobs over two and a half years,” Capital Development Board Director Jim Underwood said in a statement, “and we look forward to working with the skilled trades people that will make this marvelous facility a reality.”

The Illinois Board of Higher Education first recommended a $22.5 million appropriation for construction of the facility in 2002. In 2006, the Capital Development Board and WIU officials selected the center’s design team, and the final concept was finalized two years later. Though the university hosted a ceremonial groundbreaking in 2011, construction will likely begin in earnest in late 2014 or early 2015, following the selection of a construction manager. The facility is slated to celebrate its grand opening in the spring semester of 2018.

Cannon Design of Chicago served as the Architect of Record for the CPA project, and Pelli, Clarke, Pelli of New Haven, Conn. provided additional design expertise. Theatre Projects Consultants of Norwalk, Conn. and Kirkegaard Assoc. of Chicago provided theatrical and A/V and acoustical services. Affiliated Engineers Inc. of Madison, Wis. and David Mason Assoc. and Thornton Thomasetti Inc., both of Chicago, comprise the project’s engineering team.

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A news release from Illinois Governor Pat Quinn’s office stated that the goal of the construction program is to “improve higher education in Illinois while creating thousands of construction jobs for the state’s workers.” The funding is one aspect of the $31 billion Illinois Jobs Now! plan, which strives to create 439,000 jobs over six years.

The construction program allotted $90 million for the 2013 fiscal year, spreading it out for numerous institutions. Aurora University received $1.6 million, North Central College in Naperville received $1.3 million, Judson University in Elgin received $744,000, Benedictine University in Lisle received $1.6 million, Midwestern University in Downers Grove received $1.5 million, the National University of Health Sciences in Lombard received $800,000, Elmhurst College received $1.5 million, and Quincy University received $886,722.

Schools such as North Central College submitted proposed construction projects to the state in 2008 and will be drawing projects from the list to decide where to apply the new funds.

Previous state-funded projects for North Central include the school’s Riverwalk Gateway and a new LEED-certified residence hall and recreational center housing 400 students.

Quincy University plans to use the funds for projects the university worked on during the past two summers such as renovating Garner Hall, Tim Weis, Vice President of Business and Finance at Quincy University, said. He stated that the university is using the additional funding as a reimbursement for the expenses of these past projects. The institution plans to replace a boiler and conduct some roof work on the institution’s north campus.

Private universities across the state have received $200 million over four years as a result of the capital construction program.
 

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