Webster University to Start ISB Construction
ST. LOUIS — Webster University in St. Louis will begin construction on a new 85,000-square-foot Interdisciplinary Science Building (ISB) later this month. Construction crews will start by staking out the physical perimeter of the building before preparing the site.
The new facility will offer science, technology, engineering, arts, math and medicine (STEAMM) programs, according to a statement by the university. Recent studies have forecast an increase in jobs in the St. Louis region that require employees to have STEAMM-related preparation. The most popular major at the university is currently biology, according to a statement released at the groundbreaking.
“This state-of-the-art building will meet the needs of Webster’s students and faculty; advance the region’s growing strengths; and support collaboration among faculty, staff and students across multiple disciplines,” said Elizabeth J. Stroble, president of Webster University, in a statement. “I look forward to the day we open the long-anticipated Interdisciplinary Science Building because the hopes and plans of our students, faculty, staff, donors, trustees and community supporters who have called for a science building for many years will be fulfilled.”
Design plans for the ISB were unveiled at a groundbreaking ceremony for the facility in September 2015. The building is designed in an L shape and will be built just north of the East Academic Building (EAB). By joining the two structures at the north end of the EAB, it will become easier to travel between the two structures.
When the ISB opens, it will house the departments of Anthropology and Sociology, Biological Sciences, International Language and Cultures, Nurse Anesthesia, Nursing, Psychology and the Institute of Human Rights. It will feature 25 laboratory classrooms, four dedicated classrooms, a dual computation laboratory/classroom, 51 faculty offices (with six for adjunct faculty), 20 staff offices and a 129-seat auditorium. There will also be commons areas throughout the building for students and faculty to collaborate and hold study sessions.
“Construction of the Interdisciplinary Science Building has been a pinnacle of the university’s comprehensive master plan. The plan envisions a connected and attractive environment on the Webster Groves campus that embodies the global culture and character of the university, ” said Julian Schuster, provost, senior vice president and chief operating officer of Webster University, in a statement. “This building will provide more than additional space, it will be a place where our students, faculty and staff will shape their ideas and create new innovative solutions for the most pressing challenges facing our local communities, as well as global society.”
When Webster included the ISB in its 2012 master plan, it was determined that the university would need a new electrical substation in order to construct it, as the one currently serving Webster Groves was at capacity. That substation was finished at the end of August 2015. Other accommodations for the new facility include the expansion of the university’s parking garage to meet future demand.
The estimated cost of the project, including all the new equipment for the building, is estimated at $44 million. Construction is scheduled for completion in 2017.