The future of the Career Center, currently located in Hendricks Hall, remains uncertain as the University decides when it will be moved to a different location and where that location will be. Since last spring, the University planned to build new Career Center offices in the proposed Alumni Center, which is still in planning. But the scope of the Alumni Center project has grown too large, so the University decided to exclude the Career Center from the plans, said Robin Holmes, vice president of Student Affairs.
University spokesman Phil Weiler said the University has been trying to find a way of incorporating the Career Center into the Alumni Center facility since they began creating it.
“It really still is our hope that that will happen, but it doesn’t look like it is feasible,” said Weiler. “There have been discussions as late as this week with the architects” about finding a way to design the new facility to include the Career Center without exceeding space limitations for the building.
How the Career Center’s move was going to be funded was always unclear to the facility’s staff. University Advancement is leading efforts to raise the $25 million needed to build the alumni facility, which is funded entirely by private contributions, but because the decision to include the Career Center in the project came later in the design process, the funding for that move had to come from another source, said Kathie Bedbury, associate director of Alumni Center Development.
“We were told (by the University) we were going to be in the building and that the money would be found,” said Deb Chereck, director of the Career Center.
Weiler said the other reason the Career Center will not be a part of the new facility is a lack of funding, in addition to the lack of space.
Rick Guerra, associate director of employer development at the Career Center, said that the center was never a part of the decision to move to the Alumni Center.
“We weren’t ever pursuing anything. We are happy to be where we are at,” said Guerra. If the center could be relocated to a place that was more centrally located and well-traveled by students they would be very happy, said Guerra. If the Career Center was to be housed in the Alumni Center, it would be the only student service in the new facility.
“I think that the Career Center was always going to be the odd duck in that building,” said Chereck. “I’m convinced there is a better place for us, and I’m looking forward to participating in talks that put us in another location.”
Weiler said that University President Dave Frohnmayer has charged Holmes with finding a way to include the Career Center in the “learning neighborhood” on the eastern “gateway” portion of campus.
Holmes said that she doesn’t view the decision to exclude the Career Center from new development on Franklin as negative.
“We had some plans for the Career Center on the back burner, so now we just thought we’d bring them up to the front burner,” said Holmes.
Holmes is looking specifically at moving the Career Center near Oregon Hall so it would be near the residence halls and close to the new Alumni Center and, therefore, have the opportunity to interact with students and alumni.
The decision to include the Career Center in the facility came in spring 2007, at which point Career Center staff joined the User Group, which is made up of a group of people who will be using the new facility and is involved in the design process. The architecture firm planning the project, Opsis, then added a space in the building design for them.
Chereck said that by not including the Career Center, planners will be able to reduce the new building by one floor.
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