Building Promise
An overview of projects that continue to enhance Villanova’s campus
Villanova’s campus is a home, a workplace and a destination. The University sets a high standard in providing an exceptional living, learning and working environment, and there are staff in many areas responsible for ensuring a vibrant campus that serves the needs of Villanova’s students, faculty, staff, alumni and visitors.
The Office of Facilities Management works to steward Villanova’s buildings, landscape and physical spaces. In addition to leading major renovations and campus transformations, this team is continually prioritizing and undertaking projects to maintain and improve the academic, residential and professional spaces across campus.
“It is important to recognize the level of dedication and attention to detail that goes into the overall care of our campus and its historic buildings.”
Roger Demareski '91 COE
“It is easy to see and appreciate the impact of the building of The Commons or the current Center for Engineering Education and Research expansion project,” says Roger Demareski ’91 COE, executive vice president of Administration and Operations. “But it is also important to recognize the level of dedication and attention to detail that goes into the overall care of our campus and its historic buildings.”
This past summer, projects ranged from large-scale building renovations to aesthetic enhancements in residence halls — from roof replacements to classroom technology upgrades to new pathways to support a pedestrian-friendly campus. Here are a few of the most visible highlights.
Creating Campus Connections
Brick paver pathways crisscross Villanova’s main campus, connecting buildings and creating inviting walkways. But the area around Tolentine Hall and the Center for Engineering Education and Research has not had the same pedestrian focus — until now. The expansion project for the College of Engineering’s new home is creating an opportunity to upgrade the surrounding roads and pathways, and to rethink how walkways create connections to these buildings and to the rest of campus. The expanded Engineering building will open in Fall 2024, but campus community members are already taking advantage of the first benefits of this work with a new brick paver walkway that leads from the front of Tolentine Hall and provides a new sidewalk all the way to St. Thomas of Villanova Monastery.
Supporting Graduate and Adult Students
The goal for summer renovations in Vasey Hall’s former theatre space centered around better serving graduate and adult students, as envisioned within the Strategic Plan. While these students access all aspects of Villanova’s campus — from college buildings to Falvey Library to the Career Center — Vasey Hall provided a unique opportunity to create a dedicated resource hub and community space for graduate and adult learners. Already home to the College of Professional Studies, the Prince Family Veterans Resource Center and the graduate program in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Vasey Hall now also houses the Center for Graduate Research and Education, with offices for its professional staff as well as an inviting new area for students to gather, collaborate and study.
A Home for Mission and Ministry
The Augustinian Catholic mission and values are at the heart of all Villanova does as a university. Now, the Office of Mission and Ministry has a new space in the heart of campus in the renovated St. Rita’s Hall. The building’s transformation will allow all the areas of Mission and Ministry — including the Center for Faith and Learning, Campus Ministry, the Center for Peace and Justice Education, Mission Engagement and Strategic Initiatives, and the St. Thomas of Villanova Center for Common Good — to be together under one roof for the first time. St. Rita’s is a new home for Mission and Ministry, and a new place to find a feeling of home as the office works to serve and uplift Villanovans of all backgrounds and faiths.
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