Big changes are coming to EIU in the form of a new science building on campus. The three-story building will be located on the south side of the Tarble Arts Center and will house chemistry and biology programs.
The complete plan for the science facility is being funded by a capital bill from the state of Illinois worth $118 million with around $95 million going towards just the construction.
The capital bill is part of the Rebuild Illinois program issued by Gov. J.B. Pritzker. The program consists of a six-year plan to create jobs and develop infrastructure in each area of the state.
But the road to starting plans for this project has been a long one, with Eastern waiting for this opportunity for more than 10 years before the capital bill was eventually passed.
Vice President for Business Affairs Matt Bierman said the necessity for this building is evident.
“We’ve had this science building on our request for a long time,” said Bierman. “If you look at a lot of our science facilities, there’s definitely a need. Some of our lab spaces specifically are somewhat original to the building, and we struggle meeting the needs of our students with today’s learning styles.”
These limitations are solely due to age, said Bierman, as the Life Sciences Building and the Physical Sciences Building on campus have stood for over 60 years.
Senior biology major Lucas Grindley has experienced these limitations and said the one he sees the most is a lack of space in the Life Sciences Building.
“This building kind of houses all of the bio fields,” said Grindley. “You have your pre-meds, you’ve got your health, you’ve got your environmentalist, geologist, and we’re all kind of just sharing the same space and resources. So, it can be challenging with all these wonderful people on the same equipment at the same time.”
According to Bierman, planning for the project started back in 2018. COVID-19 and contractual issues stalled the process.
The new science resources, which will include new classrooms, offices and laboratories, will help student enrollment and provide jobs within the community, Bierman said.
“The community is excited about this because not only does it bring jobs for the construction side, but it brings an energy to our science programs that is really needed,” Bierman said. “It’ll be a space that we can be really proud of, and we can help recruit students and show them all the things that we can offer here at Eastern.”
But for the students who are studying science courses now, they most likely won’t see the finished building until after they graduate.
Grindley said while he will not get to use the multimillion-dollar facilities, he is happy future students will have the opportunity.
“I won’t still be a student here by the time it’s all done, but I’m excited for future bio students because even though we’re in this kind of limited old building, I’ve seen a lot of people excel in their fields,” Grindley said.
Right now, the university along with contracting agencies are designing the new building before construction, which could take 18 months to two years, Bierman said. After that, another two years will be spent on the construction before anyone walks into the new addition to Eastern’s campus.
Drew Coffey can be reached at 581-2812 or at akcoffey@eiu.edu.
