University Of Portland Unveils Plans For New Academic Center

The University of Portland is thinking big - 63,000 square feet big, to be exact. That's the size of the planned new academic center the school unveiled on Tuesday.

The building will have classrooms, offices, auditorium, career center, and the Dundon-Berchtold Institute for Moral Formation and Applied Ethics.

The institute is named for Amy Dundon-Berchtold - a member of the school's board of regents - and her husband, Jim Berchtold.

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Their $15 million commitment served as the lead gift for the building.

"I can imagine no better place for our students to engage in their education and to seek answers to core questions than our new academic center," University President Reverend Mark Poorman said Tuesday. Dundon-Berchtold Hall will "take the University of Portland to new heights and deeply impact our students' experiences for generations to come."

The school says that Dundon-Berchtold Hall will provide much needed academic space for the campus.

As the student population at the University has grown 30% over the past decade, classroom space has remained the same. Many of the classrooms in the building will be designed for interactive learning, with spaces that are equipped with moveable furniture and updated technology. Other "cluster" classrooms will be used for small groups of students to work cooperatively and collaboratively together on projects and assignments, a core requirement of many University courses across all disciplines.

The Dundon-Berchtold project continues a wave of capital construction and improvements at the University. Since 2009, the University has constructed or renovated 11 new buildings or structures on the 150-acre campus.

The university has recently added the Beauchamp Recreation & Wellness Center (August 2015) and the Lund Family Hall (August 2016).

The school also recently completely renovated the Pilot House (October 2015), which houses the University's bookstore, dining facility, kitchen, and lounge.

The University plans to begin demolition of Howard Hall, a former recreation center, in the late spring, with construction of the new building on that site starting in late summer.

Illustration University of Portland