~Teaching, science and business students reside in learning community
Over the past couple of years Southeast Missouri State University has seen an immense amount of construction and expansion to its campus.
The rate of enrollment has increased to the point of having to house students who wished to live on campus at an off-campus location, but Southeast finally is ready to open a new residence hall.
"The new residence hall is the product of more than two years of planning and construction efforts," [Bruce Skinner, assistant vice president for Student Success and director of Residence Life said.]
The new residence hall is located next to the Otto and Della Seabaugh Polytechnic Building, Robert A. Dempster Hall and Marvin Rosengarten Athletic Complex. New Hall has suite style rooms connected by a shared entrance and bathroom. The residence hall has multiple small living rooms throughout the building, a large game room/kitchenette, laundry room and multiple study lounges on each floor.
"The building has not been named by the university's board of regents and will be called New Hall until the board approves naming the building," vice president of Finance and Administration Kathy Mangels said. "It was designed with the same room layout and general amenities as Merick Hall."
While the building layout is along the same lines of Merick Hall, room and board rates are also similar to that of Vandiver, Myers, Henderson and the north and west wings of Towers Complex.
"We have continued with our efforts to expand our residential learning and themed communities, and there are multiple learning communities in the new hall," Skinner said. "Examples of these learning communities include 'tomorrow's teachers,' business and the science learning community."
Learning communities group students with the same academic interests and goals together on certain floors of the residence halls and surrounded them with a community of resources that will aid them in the classroom.
Zach Barker, one of the two third floor resident assistants in the New Hall science learning community believes this is going to be a fantastic year for everyone living there.
"I have lived in community-style living my previous two years on campus," Barker said. "So living in the new hall is like a culture shock for me. From the outside it shares some similarities with Merick, but on the inside, this is a building all of its own."
