Arkansas Tech to add $16.5 million building to Russellville campus

Arkansas Tech University will move forward with plans to construct a new $16.5 million academic, student support and administrative facility on its main campus in Russellville following action by the Tech Board of Trustees on Thursday (Aug. 22).

Trustees gave their permission for the creation of full construction drawings and the submission of a bond feasibility study to the Arkansas Department of Higher Education Coordinating Board to issue revenue bonds not to exceed $5.5 million to provide part of the funding for the project.

The remaining dollars needed to build the facility will come from Arkansas Tech physical plant funds ($7.1 million), general improvement funds from the Arkansas Legislature ($3.4 million) and general improvement funds from the office of Gov. Mike Beebe ($1 million).

“This project would not have been possible without the general improvement funds that were made available by Gov. Mike Beebe and through the legislative efforts of Sen. Michael Lamoureux,” Arkansas Tech President Dr. Robert Brown said in a statement. “We are indebted to both of those individuals.”

The new academic, student support and administrative facility will be located on the parcel of land previously occupied by Bryan Hall, which was demolished earlier this summer.

Once complete, the new 66,900-square foot facility will house the following operating areas: admissions on the first floor; financial aid, student accounts and the student identification card office on the second floor; registrar, Upward Bound and Student Support Services — a pair of federally-funded programs that provide students with barriers to higher education resources to achieve their academic objectives — on the third floor; and payroll, budget and human resources on the fourth floor.

In addition, the Arkansas Tech Graduate College and eTech – which oversees the institutional initiatives in online learning – will have a presence on the first floor of the building. There will be classrooms and conference rooms on all four floors of the facility.

David Moseley, senior vice president for administration and finance at Arkansas Tech, told trustees that construction could begin as soon as the spring 2014 semester and that it will take approximately two years to construct the facility.

The Trustees on Thursday also approved the following new, full-time faculty appointments at Arkansas Tech-Ozark Campus for the 2013-14 academic year:
• Candace Harkreader, clinical coordinator and cardiovascular technology instructor;
• John Harris, instructor in criminal justice at the Arkansas Tech Career Center;
• Brenda Huntsinger, health information technology instructor;
• Wendi Pool, program chair in occupational therapy assistant;
• Charles Trusty, instructor in drafting, engineering and architecture at the Arkansas Tech Career Center; and
• Dr. Sarah White, science instructor.