Miami Middletown Plans New Campus Center

Miami University Middletown recently announced plans to construct a new facility designed to serve the campus and the greater community.

Designed by Michael Schuster Associates of Cincinnati, the one-story structure will be 21,600 square feet. The facility will be built onto the southeastern corner of Johnston Hall, and have dual entrances for the community and student wings. Approximately one third of the total space will come from renovation of existing facilities.

"Our current facilities - in Johnston Hall and Verity Lodge - are inadequate and outdated with limited access," said Michael Governanti, Executive Director of Miami University Middletown. "Since the student union in Johnston Hall was created in 1981 our enrollments have more than doubled, and we are hosting more campus and community events."

Features in the new student wing include a student union with a food court, recreational and meeting spaces, and performance areas. New offices and meeting areas for student affairs staff, student government, and other student groups are included in the plans.

The community wing will feature a large multi-purpose room, plus two adjacent meeting rooms and a catering kitchen.

The entire building will be networked with up-to-date telecommunications and audio-visual equipment with internet access for meetings, seminars, workshops and special events.

Officials estimate the cost of the new center at $5 million. The campus' goal is to raise half of that amount through donor support, with the balance of the funding to come from state capital appropriations for the campus.

A committee of more than 40 community leaders and volunteers has been formed to lead fund-raising efforts for the new construction. Heading the committee are Honorary Chair, former State Senator Barry Levey and Operating Chairpersons William and Patricia Schaefer and Roland P. Ely, Jr. The Steering Committee includes Mary Jane Palmer, David and Carole Schul, Perry Thatcher, Richard Slagle, Michael Governanti, Rod Nimtz and Sherry Pieratt.

Groundbreaking for the new center could begin as early as fall of 2004 depending upon the successful securing of major donations.

"We've spent a lot of time considering how we can best serve our students and the community in the new facility," Governanti said, "and the way the facility is designed will enable us to meet both goals."

"The center will be an asset for the Middletown regional community," said Sherry Pieratt, the campus' Director of Development, "affording us new opportunities for educational, cultural, social and economic development. It will allow us to host academic multi-day conferences, which will provide for partnering with area hotels and restaurants."

For more information on the new center, call Miami Middletown's Office of Development at (513) 727-3463.