Northwest Missouri State University - Tower Yearbook (Maryville, MO)

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The structural design of the station is designed with a modern look. The building had a coffee shop and a 24-hour convenience store, photo by Mike Dye Leather chairs fill seating areas throughout The Station for students to study or lounge. Station Manager Kristin Jackson said the facilities have fulfilled expectations, photo by Mike Dye [ Continued from page 9 The Station: Plush leather couches and computer chairs lined the walls, and the sound of blenders crushing ice for Javalanches accompanied the smell of coffee beans. The Station and C3 opened with the suites and apartments. The convenience store, desk and building were open 24 hours a day to give students a place to grab food, study quietly oi just chat with friends. I think that what the building is now is exactly what we wanted it to be, Tower Suites hall director and Station manager Kristin Jackson said. We have a lot of services that are over here. We are getting a lot of response from the convenience store. All the time, there are always people running in and out. The coffee shop is more popular than it can handle. Jackson said students utilized the seating areas throughout the building as well, which was a concern from the beginning. Jackson said the 24-hour facility was also used by Desk Assistants who appreciated the night hours so they could work hours no other campus job offered. Jackson said the DAs set up the meeting rooms for the following day ' s agenda, which helped because the daytime workers were too busy. Jackson hoped ARAMARK, which managed the convenience store, used the late hours as an opportunity to restock shelves. Java City coffee shop, however, was not a 24- hour business. Jackson said she wanted the coffee shop to consider lengthened hours due to their popularity. DA Adam Sabaliauskas worked approximately 20 hours a week at The Station. Watching the new facility develop, Sabaliauskas said people went there to relax, study and use computers and meeting room facilities. It ' s designed for everyone, Sabaliauskas said. From the big wigs to the average Joe, people come in to chill out and be comfy. It ' s like Cheers without the alcohol. 10 phase I I DESIGNED BY | HiTOMI KOVAMA

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Vlaster plan progresses Focus on community living phases in new system. ' ' V Megan Heuer All empty Perrin Hall and Hiulson Hall stuoddt-solalooii llu ' t-ast side i r campus while a refurbished convention center buzzed with activity. I ' nivorsirv Regents unanimously approved the Phase 11 plan Sept. 22 to create residcTitial housing tor treshnien students. How do we transition students from mom and dad ' s house to graduating from college, and what do we need to do? That ' s where we ■.|)ent about 18 months in weekly meetings, almost painful. The process look a while, but we know where we ' re going. Assistant Director of Kesidential Life Matl B;iker said. With Phase I completed and the Forest Village Apartments and Tower Suites occupied, accommodating the transition process in freshmen housing was next on the agenda of the 15-year, Residential Life Master Plan. Vice President of Finance Ray Courter said sometimes, no matter how hardthcyworked. the current facilities overwhelmed their ability to maintain an environment of a living and learning atmosphere. Baker explained how the architectural models of the new housing fit with the programming model of each group of students. Freshmen learning centers supported an atmosphere with almost twice the number of resident assistants, stricter policies and more programs to get freshmen out of their rooms and acquainted with college living. The Tower Suites, which housed sophomores and juniors, allowed more freedoms. Suites included privatized bathrooms. rela.xed policies and coed floors. Bedrooms housed two beds with lofting bunking options and a small living area. The Forest Village Apartments taught students to work with r( )om mates to pay gas and electric bills and live in a real world situation. Each apartment had four bedrooms, nvo bathrooms and a living area attached to a kitchen. ' We want the upperclass halls to be different. We warn freshmen to do their laundry on the first floor with pef)] le they don ' t know standing next to them. Baker said. Wewantthem to sit and watch their laundry or use the pingpong table next door, where it ' s their job to sit and talk 1(1 people thev wouldn ' t talk to otherwise. Originally, the Master Plan included renovating Hudson and Perrin Halls. After researching the cost. Baker said the difference in remodehng and rel)uildingwas very small. One million dollars difference, which you know you ' re actually I hinking. that ' sa lot of money. ' but it ' s .3 percent difference, Baker said. According to Courter. the entire Phase II plan cost $29.5 million, ( instriution accounted for $27.5 million including architect, engineer and other professional fees. The cost of construction also included tearing down the old buildings and furnishing the new facilities. Until freshmen moved in. the University borrowed $2 million to issue revenue bonds to I lav t he debt. Courter said the idea was to have a self-supporting structure where the actual residents ' cost of living covered the monthly pavinents •-o tuition would not be raised. The bathrooms of riio newly built apartments accomodate two of the four roommates. The apartment buildings contained two bathrooms, one kitchen, a living room and four rooms unlike the suitesk. which have two. pholo by Mike Dye Baker said the stall working on the project did lUJl want to de()end on the number of campus residents increasing because of new facilities. Hudson housed 500 and Perrin 186. Therefore, only 498 beds were planned for the new building so the self-supporting idea worked. Courter studied pages of spreadsheets to determine the cost. The committee presented the plan to the Board of Regents in stages. First, an overall plan was presented to the Board. Then, the Regent president sat down with architects and the planning team to be involved in more of the process. Abinder and PowerPoint presentation were also prepared I ' or the Regents to absorb over two meetings and a retreat. The challenge there is, as you might suspect, if you did a class presentation on a topic that you really spent a lot of time researching and understanding, how do you condense it down into a 20 minute class presentation. Courter said. Courter said the PowerPoint was refined so it had a story that tracked the team ' s philosophical purpose, residential life living learning input, design and financial print ipals. The pros and cons between remodeling and building new were weighed also. Demolition of the existing Hudson and Perrin Builchngs was scheduled to begin January 2005. Beginning with removal of asbestos, the two builchngs were expected to be down by the beginning of June to start construction on the new model. Courter said it was gratitying to see the approval of the students and Regents of the plan they worked on for so long. The outcome has been just so heartwarming because people could really grasp the points and the logic that we were following. Courter said. We ' ve gone over this with students. Student Senate. PiH A and others, and boy, they also feel very positive about what this means, Courter said. And they can reflect on when they were freshmen and what their experience was like in Hudson and Perrin. which sometimes it ' s crowded and hot and gang showers and stools don ' t work. The next part of Phase II was scheduled to start in 2007. It included remodeling or rebuilding Franken or Phillips depending on need. Residential Life staff began planning Phase 11 before Pha.se I finished and understood the need to be flexible in the future of the Master Plan because changes would occur. Fifteen years sounds like a long time, but I ' m sort of awestruck by the fact that we ' re already on Phase II, and 1 feel like we haven ' t been in Phase I that long when in fact, we have, and they ' re occupied, the apartments and suites. Courter said. Time slips by so (juickly with the vision that a lot of our staff has had lookingout to the future, especially residential people. And we give them high praise for looking ahead and having the vision to try and take the institution alongthe path ofthinking about where we ' re headed. I think that ' s really protnuiid for the organization for the betterment of our students. Continued page 10 phase II Student Life

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Sitting Tables line tne outside of the on campus grocery store located inside of the Station. Students are able to buy treats and snacks and have a place to sit and relax while taking a break from college life. photo by Mike Dye Portable education Working on a university laptop. Oakley Burson checks her mail in her suite room. The suites are a new addition to the campus, with accomodations for four students, photo by M de Dye Laptops help students better access technology. by Megan Ormsby When students entered the second floor of the library, their eyes met tables stacked high with a plethora of laptop computers, a pile of green and black computer bags and technicians working to get students tuned in to the newest University investment. Technology tookabig leap. Fall 2004. Tower Suites and Forest Village Apartment housing plans included an estimated 500 laptop computers. Vice President for Information Systems Jon Rickman said offering laptop computers to students interested pros- pective students. Rickman said because campus was techno- logically oriented, it helped graduates display the computing skills they gained while completing their education. Rickman thought laptops looked attractive to prospective students and helped maintain and possibly increase enrollment. Assistant Director of Residential Life Matt Baker said the laptops increased the number of students in the Residence Halls. The computers also benefited students by providing flexibility and freedom because students did not have to share with roommates. As for liabilities, laptops were covered under the vendor warranty. However, if damaged by the student, they paid up to $1,000, less than the cost of a replacement. If computers were stolen or lost and a police report was filed, the cost to the student was only $500. Sophomore Shawna Gibson said she benefited every day from having a laptop instead of a desktop computer. The laptops are more convenient. I don ' t have to worry about sharing, and I can take it to class or home when I need to, Gibson said. Plans for technology, such as wireless Internet, were being considered in places like the Station, the StudentUnion, and B.B. Owens Library. Sophomore Allison Yarnell said having Internet connection available was the only benefit to having the laptop. I used my laptop to do chemistry problems online, but if I needed to take it anywhere else, Internet connection had to be available. And if it wasn ' t, the laptop was no different to me than the desktop computer. phase II Student Life 11