New Rec Center, Statues and Park at Benedictine College

List of Campus-wide Improvements and Upgrades

Published: Wednesday, August 3, 2016

The Benedictine College Quad

Two new statues, depicting Mother Teresa and the Sacred Heart of Jesus, are the most anticipated changes to campus this Fall 2016. But they are just a small part of the changes students will see when they return to campus.

Science and Engineering Building. The preliminary steps to construction have already started on this $25 million project which will rebuild and renovate the college’s science facilities. (More info.)

Student Recreation Center. The newly built Student Recreation Center begins its first full year of operation this year and will be dedicated at a ceremony on Oct. 1 during Family weekend. The 42,000 square foot facility features a hanging track and a turfed field along with two full-sized basketball courts, two multipurpose rooms for aerobics, Zumba and spinning classes, and a spacious cardio/weight room with 38 workout machines, plus locker rooms, a healthy snack bar, study area and offices. (More info.)

Mother Teresa Statue. A statue of the soon-to-be canonized St. Teresa of Calcutta will be unveiled in the first week of school. The statue, paid for by donations, will be located in front of the Mother Teresa Center for Nursing and Health Education as part of the college’s Mother Teresa Days celebration. (More info.)

Raven Memorial Park. This park, located between the Raven Walk and the Student Recreation Center, will feature a waterfall, stone pathway to the Grotto and nine benches. Funded entirely by donors to remember loved ones and dedicated to those who passed away while they were Benedictine College students, the park will also feature a statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in its center. The new statue, paid for by donors, will be unveiled at Homecoming.

Campus safety. As part of a campuswide safety and security upgrade, McDonald Hall has received new doors and lock sets. Also, to answer students’ concerns, new stairways are being added from the McDonald Parking Lot and Second Street and between the two parking lots east of Lemke Hall.

Student Life Upgrades. A new office for the Assistant Director of Residence Life, Jennifer Sanger, is only one improvement in student services.

  • New furniture will be added to St. Scholastica Hall and McDonald Hall. Turner Hall will have all new beds and mattresses. Newman Hall will get lounge furniture upgrades.
  • Residence upgrades are planned for St. Joseph Hall’s stairway and Memorial Hall showers.
  • Concrete repairs on campus include a new sidewalk connecting the sidewalk to the east of the Recreation Center and Raven Memorial Park.
  • Newman parking lot has been restriped for better traffic flow.
  • St. John Paul II Student Center. The wall dividing the atrium of the St. John Paul II Student Center and the Grab & Go area has been removed to improve traffic flow in this area.
  • Six benches have been added to green areas on campus, an SGA-initiated college project.

Athletics upgrades. Improvements include:

  • The Haverty gym now features new basketball hoops and a repaired and refinished floor.
  • The Haverty Fitness Room has been renovated and its equipment updated.
  • Locker room renovation has been completed for Volleyball and Men’s Basketball.

RavenZone Portal. The new RavenZone Portal which debuted last spring means no more logging into separate systems and sites to manage day-to-day campus life. The RavenZone is a higher education portal that simplifies information exchange for students, faculty and staff by giving them a single, virtual doorway.

Architecture studio. In support of the college’s new Architecture major, the college has created an architectural studio, computer lab and instructor offices in Bishop Fink Hall.

Thompson Trading Room. A state-of-the-art classroom has been established for the new investment course in the School of Business, giving students real-world experience managing a portion of the college’s endowment. The room is named for the late Byron Thompson, a 1955 graduate of the college and decades-long leader of Country Club Bank.

Nursing rooms. Last year, the Nursing Department added a birthing simulator called Noelle, with infants. This year the program has added and fully equipped an ICU room and a trauma room, as well as an observation room from which instructors can view students using both. Other new equipment for nursing includes I.V. pumps, Doppler monitors and, thanks to a donor, a hospital-grade medications cart.

Engineering and Art Space. Another former Atchison Hospital building comes online this summer, allowing the college to clear rooms in Bishop Fink Hall for the Art Department to use for sculpture, and giving Engineering students a place to locate their shop while construction of the new Science and Engineering Building is underway.

Founded in 1858, Benedictine College is a Catholic, Benedictine, residential, liberal arts college located on the bluffs above the Missouri River in Atchison, Kansas.  The school is proud to have been named one of America’s Best Colleges by U.S. News & World Report as well as one of the top Catholic colleges in the nation by First Things magazine and the Newman Guide.  It prides itself on outstanding academics, extraordinary faith life, strong athletic programs, and an exceptional sense of community and belonging.  It has a mission to educate men and women within a community of faith and scholarship.

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