Here’s a list of some of the major projects, guided by input from faculty, students and staff, that took place over the summer.
Classroom Upgrades
HSU’s incoming freshmen class of 1,250 will enjoy five revamped classrooms: Siemens 108 and 115, Founders Hall 25 and 118 and Art 102. Overall upgrades include new paint, signage, seating and teaching technology.
Highlights include swivel chairs that promote collaborative learning; “smart” lecterns with built-in projector and laptop docks; and wall-mounted displays that eliminate glare and double as both whiteboards and projection screens. All rooms were also made compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. In many rooms, seating arrangements have been upgraded to increase capacity.
Library
Visitors to the first floor of the library will enjoy new chairs and tables throughout the refreshed space. The $520,000 makeover also includes new paint, carpeting and an expanded collaborative study area. Other upgrades include individual computer workstations, lounge and swivel chairs to promote collaborative learning. A more spacious layout means better natural lighting and additional room to display student and campus art.
The library’s study and lecture rooms were also outfitted with IdeaPaint, a dry erase board paint that turns any wall into a dry erase board. The circulation desk also received an exterior facelift.
Fulkerson Recital Hall
Students in Fulkerson Recital Hall will enjoy a refinished stage, new curtains and expanded seating. The lobby also received new paint, signage, furniture and electronic window coverings.
Bookstore
The bookstore remodeling—the only improvement not funded by the university—includes new flooring, upgraded display cases and an improved layout. The improvements were funded by Follett, which took over bookstore operations from the University Center last year.
The new, more spacious setup means that patrons will have an easier time locating products and getting staff assistance. Other upgrades—like dark cherry wood product displays and a multi-colored rug—make the interior more inviting. Online shoppers will also enjoy a new office adjacent to the textbook area for picking up Internet orders.
KHSU-FM
KHSU-FM, the campus-based public radio station that serves the North Coast, also received upgrades to its facilities, including new digital broadcasting equipment in its Theatre Arts Building studios. A Corporation for Public Broadcasting grant has also added hybrid digital (HD) broadcasting capabilities to KHSU coverage in the Eureka/Arcata/McKinleyville area. Listeners with an HD radio are now able to receive current KHSU programming with better quality on HD-1. KHSU plans to add a new news and information program stream on HD-2 in the future.
Improvements on the horizon include the conversion of the Forbes Complex into a Health & Wellness Center.
Miscellaneous Improvements
- 168 new computers in various campus labs
- Exterior painting of the Van Duzer Theater, Theater Arts, Music A, Music B and Natural Resources buildings
- New roofing on the Science A, Science D and Forestry buildings
- New parking signs throughout campus