Construction begins on Phase II of student housing
Just one year after University Place opened to rave reviews in August 2002‚ a second phase of student housing is in the works that will double the number of residential students on campus in fall 2004.
Georgia
(Aug 13, 2003) — Just one year after University Place opened to rave reviews in August 2002‚ a second
phase of student housing is in the works that will double the number of residential
students on campus in fall 2004.
Approximately 750 students — all freshmen — will be housed in a new development under
construction in the north parking lot adjacent to the campus services building. Another
192 slots will be available in University Manor‚ an apartment complex behind KSU Place
that the KSU Foundation is in the process of purchasing.
Like University Place and KSU Place‚ these new additions are being paid for with privatized
funding made possible through the combined efforts of the KSU Foundation‚ the University
System of Georgia Board of Regents‚ Kennesaw State University and Place Properties.
The Cobb Development Authority approved the issuance of $53 million in bonds in June
to enable the foundation to build more student housing on campus.
“The foundation is unquestionably excited with the new housing project and the ability
to provide a way for more students to share in the experience of university life at
KSU‚” said foundation President James A. Fleming.
Already‚ demand has exceeded supply for the more than 1‚000 beds at University Place
and KSU Place‚ which will be filled to capacity when fall semester begins. Should
any of those rooms come open over the course of the school year‚ a waiting list of
700 would−be boarders is poised and ready to fill the vacancies.
“What we’ve built at Kennesaw is a step up from any housing that I’ve seen‚ partly
because our market demands that‚” said Dr. Nancy King‚ vice president for student
success and enrollment services. “I don’t think you could get our students to live
in the kind of dormitory experience that I had as an undergraduate. I think they would
go shrieking into the streets.”
The standard set by University Place will be repeated in the new development‚ which
will consist of a series of interconnected structures standing as tall as six stories
in some places. Built into the design are a limited number of classrooms‚ along with
approximately 8‚000 square feet of retail space.
“What we have done here is tailor this to be a freshman community‚” King said. “It’s
going to be designed like a village‚ but it will be conducive to helping freshmen
get off on the right foot.”
Like their counterparts at University Place‚ residents of the new community will enjoy
the luxury of a private bed/bath‚ with shared living and kitchen spaces. Unlike the
earlier development‚ however‚ all of the apartments will open onto interior hallways‚
creating an experience not unlike the kind one might find in a more traditional dormitory
setting.
“Within the unit itself‚ they’re going to be very similar to what you see in University
Place‚” explained Earle Holley‚ vice president for business and finance. “The exterior
is different‚ in that we don’t have the open access from the outside.”
This change is meant to maximize the living/learning experience for students making
their initial foray into college life. The interior hallways will give the resident
assistants (whom King credits for the immediate success of student housing at KSU)
an opportunity to play an even greater role in the lives of their fellow classmates.
This design will also bring residents of different apartments together on a more consistent
basis‚ making it easier for incoming freshmen to build relationships not only with
their roommates‚ but other students as well.
“We see that as the place for freshmen to begin‚” King said. “Our hope would be that
they’ll want to stay on campus and‚ as they progress to be upperclassmen‚ that University
Place becomes something for them to move into.”
A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its nearly 43,000 students. With 11 colleges on two metro Atlanta campuses, Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 6 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.