SRU to break ground within two weeks on new exercise science laboratory, according to Smith

Slippery Rock University President Robert M. Smith announced at the Student Government Association (SGA) meeting Thursday that groundbreaking will take place for a new laboratory for exercise science students within the next week or two.

According to Smith, the laboratory will be located on the side of Patterson Hall and will include various resources for the exercise science program.

"You can already see the stakes being laid down for construction," Smith said. "Groundbreaking is expected to occur within the next week or two, and I think that this new resource will prove to be very helpful for many students."

Smith also discussed two other construction projects that will begin over the next year.

A new performing arts center will be built near Miller Auditorium and will include three separate rooms consisting of a main theater, a space for dance students and another room for theater students.

 The design is expected to be finished at the end of December, and construction is expected to begin in November of 2012.

"These new facilities will be terrific for those academic programs and enhance the accreditations they already have," Smith said.

The third upcoming construction project will be the demolition of the former Kraus Hall, which is expected to take place in the summer of 2012.

"This project will enable the street to be widened by Subway, where many people experience difficulties driving, as well as using the crosswalk," Smith said.

Smith also predicts the new student center to be finished sooner rather than later.

According to Jim Henry, SGA's vice president of student affairs, the new student center is expected to have a unique type of vending machine called the "Revive Water Station."

"It will look similar to a vending machine, but do much more than you would expect," Henry said. "You can put your own bottle into the machine, and it will clean it from previous uses before filling it with fresh water."

Also at the meeting, the SGA executive board presented Smith with a scrapbook to commemorate his experiences at the university.

"I am very grateful," Smith said. "Even though I'll be moving onto the next chapter in my life, I feel confident that the students will have such a powerful leadership role at this university."

The ad-hoc committee, who will determine whether SGA President Jordan Bailley's decision about the homecoming process was unconstitutional, will hold their first meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 8 at 4 p.m.

 According to Parliamentarian Zach Dornisch, the committee is hoping to have a decision ready by the next formal senate meeting on Nov. 18.