Oakton Community College officials believe their future science and health careers center will provide a conducive, flexible learning environment for students – and keep them coming back for the latest training.
The near $40 million structure will feature cutting edge laboratories, lecture rooms, classrooms and office space divided by discipline, including biology, nursing, and anatomy and physiology, among other health occupations. Along with a score of environmentally-friendly features — like a green roof, skylights and bike racks — student learning spaces are a major component of the 93,000 square-foot facility, said Margaret Lee, the college’s president.
“We hope this learning experience will provide them with the tools to keep learning,” Lee said. “It’s just going to open a lot of options in the (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics education) area.”
A groundbreaking ceremony will be held at 10 a.m. April 5 on the main campus, and the building is scheduled to open by June 2014. The overall expansion project, which includes a student enrollment center and student gathering space, is financed through various federal, state and private grants, reserve money and bonds.
The three-floor building will be built on a 4-acre site toward the east side of the Des Plaines campus, taking up portions of a grassy field and parking lot. About 35 parking spaces will be lost when the building is constructed, but school officials don’t believe that will cause parking problems.
The college made a conscientious effort to sprinkle student gathering spaces between labs and classrooms on each floor, allowing students to immediately come out of the class and discuss what they’re learning.
“It’s the way you do science and learn science right now,” Lee said.
Not only will students gain from the modern facility, but employees from area businesses, hospitals and health providers will benefit when they enroll for training and further education, Lee added.
Plans calls for about six lecture rooms, various labs and office space on the first floor, a nursing suite that duplicates a hospital setting — with hospital beds, patient simulators and nurses stations — and robust, modern spaces on the second floor for students in the physical therapy assistant and medical lab technician departments.
The third floor will feature octagon-shaped labs, a cadaver viewing room, a data lab for students to document their reports between chemistry spaces and a greenhouse. Wireless internet, whiteboard surfaces and outlets are also incorporated on every floor, and some of the student space offers a view of Lake Oakton through glass windows etched with the spines of Oak leaves.
Over 1,000 jobs will be created during the construction process, Lee said.
Architects incorporated a lot of input from Oakton’s faculty on the design, said Adam Hayashi, the college’s dean of science and health careers. Everyone is excited about the new building, he added.
“When you have a new facility, students react. You see that with their level of engagement,” Hayashi said. “It also affects faculty…it makes them more invigorated in what they do.”
College officials said they hope the building is awarded the gold-level LEED certification. Along with the green roof, some of the environmentally-friendly features include showers for bicyclists, LED light sensors, skylights and bike racks. The piers also allow flood waters to pass underneath the building.
On the exterior, green-tinted glass allows natural light to flow inside and a waterfall feature lets the building recycle roof water into Lake Oakton to increase drainage. The facility is also angled to catch the most sun and use less energy and will have outdoor classroom space, officials said.
The building “is an emblem of environmental stewardship,” said Carlee Drummer, executive director of college advancement. “It’s a good reflection of (being green) as one of our primary values.”
