On-Campus Housing Debuts at East-West University

CHICAGO — A groundbreaking ceremony took place in downtown Chicago for East-West University’s new 165,000-square-foot Student Life Center, which will offer students an option of on-campus housing for the first time in the history of the university.

The new 17-story building is designed by Chicago-based Holabird & Root. Madison Construction, also Chicago based, has been hired as the general contractor for the project. Major university funding sources and donors financed the $35 million budget needed for the building. The lot is located on a site created by the demolition of an office and storage building in the city’s South Loop neighborhood.

Holabird & Root previously worked on several college and university campuses and bring their expertise and experience in facility design to the project at East-West.

The new Student Life Center will include ten floors of campus living space, marking the first time on-campus housing will be available for East-West students. According to East-West University, students wanted to unify the school campus and believe that a Student Life Center will give students the chance to participate in an on-campus college experience. The new addition to the university includes an athletic center and many other amenities.

“To actually have a fitness center here is something major for East-West,” said Alexzandrea Enge, a sophomore majoring in business administration. Enge said students travel from communities throughout the Chicago area to attend school at East-West, just to commute home again after classes are dismissed. “Campus housing will change that,” she said.

“Currently, all East-West students commute daily from across the Chicago area to get to class, losing out on valuable study time and extracurricular activities. The new Student Life Center will free many East-West students of this burden and offer them a complete campus atmosphere as they work to earn their college degrees and prepare for professional life,” said Dr. Mohammad Wasiullah Khan, chancellor of East-West University.

The building will also house an extensive library, food court and an auditorium. The building’s design features an atrium-style space with floor-to-ceiling windows that will provide natural light and views of downtown. Indoor bridges will connect the new center with the adjacent East-West buildings to make access to the center easier and more convenient for students, faculty and staff.

The building aims to achieve LEED certification. The plans for the facility consist of a geothermal heating and cooling system, green roof and high-efficiency mechanical system.

The facility will be located near other universities including Columbia College Chicago, DePaul University, the Spertus Institute for Judaic Studies, Robert Morris College, John Marshall Law School and others.

Aldermen attended the groundbreaking ceremony and explained that the community would benefit from the additional business and cultural activities the new building project will bring.

“This is a celebration for the community,” said 2nd Ward Alderman Robert Fioretti. “East-West University’s mission to serve the underserved student populations will only be enhanced by campus offering the services that the Student Life Center will bring.”

The new center, located at 819 South Wabash Ave., will be only blocks away from the university’s main campus on 816 South Michigan Ave. and will serve all students. Construction is currently on schedule and is slated for completion by fall 2013.