New Academic Building
Investing in Our Facilities
UW-La Crosse is the second smallest campus within the UW System in terms of acreage. Only UW-Milwaukee is smaller. As a result, growth at La Crosse has placed a premium on space of all kinds. Since extending beyond current campus borders or displacing existing green space is no longer an option, we must adopt creative ways to update, improve and, as necessary, expand our facilities.
As part of the Campus Master Plan, UW-L is seeking private support for two major building projects: a new, state-of-the-art academic classroom building and a new, completely reconstructed stadium/sports complex. The classroom building will be built centrally on campus in the area that now is occupied by Baird, Trowbridge and Wilder Halls. The sports complex will replace existing facilities at the same location on campus. Both projects, by modernizing and advancing our academic and extracurricular agendas, will better serve our students and our community.
New Academic Classroom Building
(Total Project Cost: $44 Million; Private Funding Goal: $6 Million)
The proposed new academic building, the first new classroom facility on our campus since
1974, represents the initial phase in a sequence that will address the demand for more
instructional space. The need is so acute that currently it is all too common for students to sit
on the floor or attend class in makeshift space that has been hastily adapted to accommodate
growing course offerings.
Construction of the new building will provide 44 new classrooms and lecture halls incorporating advanced technology and designed with the needs of students in mind. They will feature flexible seating to accommodate interactive teaching methods, small group discussion and project work. In the heart of the campus, this new classroom facility will be accessible and central to the academic lives of our students and faculty.
New construction, like this new academic building and the new stadium/sports complex, is not just about bricks and mortar, it’s about people! It is about where and how they teach, and where and how they learn. It is because the quality of a facility does make a difference. Our mission and commitment to excellence is what drives our desire to improve our educational facilities.