Cornell College announces $35 million Science Facilities Project and largest cash gift

Cornell College welcomed students, staff, faculty, alumni, donors, and the community to campus Tuesday morning to reveal that construction will soon begin on a new science building.

This will be the first new academic building constructed on the Cornell College campus in 40 years. It will be located near the current West Science Center, and just south of South Hall. The $35 million project, to be funded completely through philanthropy, is moving forward at an accelerated pace due to a leadership gift of $20 million by alumna Jean Russell ’65 to honor her Cornell experience and her father’s legacy.

“Alumna Jean Russell ’65 has pledged to this college, the largest single cash gift in the history of Cornell College,” said Cornell College President Jonathan Brand. “Thanks to Jean and a deeply devoted group of leaders, really attached and committed to this school, we were able to hit our leadership goal of $32 million

The science project includes the construction of a four-story, 45,600 square foot science building and the renovation of the current West Science Center and Law Hall to house STEM studies. Groundwork has already started, and construction is expected to begin this spring. Barring any weather delays, construction on the new building is slated to wrap up in January of 2019, and crews are planning to finish renovations at West Science and Law Hall in the fall of 2019. Once the projects are complete, the college will have nearly 100,000 square feet of STEM space on campus.

The four floors of the new building will be filled with biology and chemistry lab spaces and classrooms, faculty offices, dedicated research space, and study areas. Math and computer science programs will join physics and engineering in West Science and kinesiology will have two floors of Law Hall.

The college will now turn to raising the remaining $3 million needed for the project as it enters into the public phase of Greater > Than, the Campaign for Cornell College. Follow the progress of the fundraising and the building project at cornellgreaterthan.com.

Originally published on Cornell College News Center, February 14, 2017.