Ground broken for building at Richard Bland College

A $19 million building under construction at Richard Bland College in Prince George County will provide more classroom space to a campus that is growing. The project is the latest in a series of renovations and additions during the past year.

The Science and Technology Building, a three-story structure with 52,000 square feet, will house classrooms for computer labs, mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology. The building also will have seminar rooms, laboratories, office space, a faculty lounge and a student lounge.

The groundbreaking for the building, which will be LEED-certified as energy-efficient, was last week. Completion is projected for August 2010.

This will be the first new academic building at the college in 40 years, facilities manager Michaele Shriver said.

She said Ernst Hall, the building that is currently being used for those departments, was built in the 1960s and is outdated.

During the past year, the college has gone through significant changes:

• Its first two residence halls opened in August, which put an end to the school's history of being solely a commuter campus.

• A new police department with four full-time and five part-time officers took over security from a private company last summer.

• Renovations at the library were completed. It was expanded from one level to two to nearly double its space to 22,700 square feet.

• A health-and-wellness clinic, staffed with a doctor and a nurse, opened in the fall. A dentist and psychologists are on call, too.

"It is very rewarding to see money being put in into our college," said Shriver, who has worked at the college for 35 years.

Though improvements are needed to old buildings, some of the changes have been prompted by increases in enrollment and projected growth. Enrollment this past academic year was about 1,600 students, compared with about 1,400 the previous year.

"We are running out of classroom space," said LeAnn Binger, director of institutional advancement. "Statistics are showing that we are going to have an influx of students in the next few years, so we want to be prepared."

Three additional residence halls and a sports complex also are planned. Renovations to the school's gym are scheduled for late this year.

The Science and Technology Building is being funded with State of Virginia College Building Authority bond money.

Contact Luz Lazo at (804) 649-6058 or .