The S.D. Ireland Family Center for Global Business and Technology

Champlain has secured impressive new faculty in the last three years to compliment its existing strong core in the business school. Three new majors have been added -- International Business, E-Business and Commerce, and Multimedia Graphics and Design. Student response has been positive and swift -- 150 have already declared majors in these new programs.

Champlain cannot afford to wait any longer to develop new facilities. The demand for current computer labs and workstations have exceeded capacity. The new Center will anchor the fourth side of the quadrangle that now features the Miller Information Commons, the Hauke Family Campus Center, and Aiken Hall. Much of this 23,000 square foot building will be built "below grade," an environmentally-friendly, low-impact design that is energy-efficient and appropriate for technology-intensive programs. The building materials used will complement the classic Champlain appearance of the historic Hill Section of Burlington.

One step inside will communicate to students and guests that this building is not another academic ivory tower. The Center's interior will differ strikingly from traditional classrooms and faculty offices. Glass-walled classrooms, all fully wired, will cluster among more open, flexible spaces that lend themselves to innovation. In one area, students will have all the resources they need to incubate new on-line businesses. In another, students and faculty will design web sites, experimenting with innovative graphics technology. In another, students might carry out corporate research projects that benefit businesses as well as teaching real-world workforce skills.

Like any new-age global facility, the Center will open every possible window to the world at large. The lobby will house an electronic atlas, the CNN World News, a newly funded international resource center, and a stock market digital ticker. In every aspect of its design, The S.D. Ireland Family Center for Global Business and Technology will represent Champlain's positive and future-oriented spirit.

The Student Life Complex

National student surveys have repeatedly identified a call for more campus organizations and recreation facilities. Both residential and day students cite fitness programs as second in importance only to leadership opportunities among all extra-curricular activities. As a result, the College made the momentous decision to replace its varsity sports program with a multi-faceted recreation, health, fitness and extracurricular program to serve all students. This facility will help us carry out this strategic plan.

This multi-level facility will have three open and interconnected levels. It will be located on the south end of the campus on the site of the outmoded dining facility, Hamrick Hall, and will extend upwards into the hillside. At 40,000 square feet, it is the largest of our three initiatives and speaks most directly to the needs of our entire campus community.

The facility will underscore Champlain's renewed emphasis on fitness and community-centered opportunities for all students. The dining room will host Coffee House performances and small group functions, with menu options from around the world. Meeting spaces for the new clubs will incorporate students' growing focus on athletic pursuits such as golf, ice hockey, tennis, and running, as well as on drama, history, arts and crafts, photography, student government, and international business. A gymnasium will allow for greater intramural sports activities on campus.

The Main Street Suites & Conference Center

As more and more Champlain students remain on campus for four years, the need for housing for third- and forth-year students grows. The rental housing market in Burlington is extremely tight and Champlain realizes that a new style of housing, where students would have their own rooms in shared suites, would be attractive.

With a brick-and-clapboard-combination siding, a shingled roof, and a porch, this 30,000- square-foot, 55-bed residence will be designed to blend in with its handsome Victorian neighborhood. Parking will be provided beneath the building to comply with zoning requirements.

While the Residence Hall will be designed primarily for academic-year students, this building will serve as a comfortable and stylish residence to accommodate "off-season" usage in summer and winter sessions, housing participants in our corporate training seminars.