New buildings set tone for start of semester at Nevada State College

Elaina Bhattacharyya's office plant and her printer sat atop a small stack of moving crates July 31 inside the James E. and Beverly Rogers Student Center, one of two new buildings at Nevada State College.

Meanwhile, a folding table accommodated her computer, her phone and a handful of other work essentials, while her files and numerous other items sat packed in boxes arrayed around her office.

"It's kind of like camping," joked Bhattacharyya, events manager at the college at 1125 Nevada State Drive.

Furniture for all of the 66,000-square-foot building's executive offices had yet to be delivered but was slated to arrive in the nick of time: by Aug. 24, the first day of classes, said Jennifer Haft, director of the President's Office and Strategic Initiatives.

"We are currently waiting on (office) furniture and soft seating for the executive suite and soft seating for the entire student center," Haft said.

Soft seating, such as cushioned chairs and couches, also had yet to arrive for the other new facility across the way: the 66,500-square-foot Nursing, Science & Education Building. The classrooms there, however, were good to go, with workers tweaking audio and visual equipment, Haft said.

The new buildings were constructed during a $54 million project.

"The groundbreaking was in January 2014, and we're already in," said Yanne Givens, the college's marketing and communications specialist. "So fast."

Various parts of the college's main campus and two leased sites at the Downtown Henderson campus — 303 and 311 S. Water St. near Basic Road — have relocated to the new facilities.

The shifting has freed up space at the Liberal Arts & Sciences Building and at the Dawson Building on the main campus and at the buildings at the Downtown Henderson campus.

The added space at the liberal arts building will house about six new faculty members, Haft said. The additional space at the Dawson Building, meanwhile, is expected to ultimately accommodate the remainder of the Water Street operations, which would mean the college would no longer have to lease space at those sites, saving about $1.5 million annually.

The college plans to revamp the Dawson Building in conjunction with that move, although a timeline has yet to be established.

The lease at 303 S. Water St. ends in November 2017, and the one at 311 S. Water St. ends in November 2016, Haft said.

"We're currently looking for subtenants for both of those buildings," Haft said.

The new buildings at the campus bring a variety of perks for students, including classes now taking place at one site.

"Before the move, students in the School of Education and the School of Nursing would have to come to Dawson and LAS (the Liberal Arts & Sciences Building) to take their more general classes and then go to the Basic and Water buildings to take classes in their major," Givens said. "Now they can take all of their classes here, in one location."

Students also can avoid having to travel elsewhere for meals because the college now includes a cafeteria, housed inside the student center. Food isn't the only advantage regarding the cafeteria.

"The most exciting part that students are going to love is that we'll have a Starbucks," Haft said.

The view from the numerous large windows at the new buildings is more scenic, too, with the campus nestled near the McCullough Mountain Range, Bhattacharyya said.

"It's a nice change," said Bhattacharyya, whose old office was on Water Street. "The natural beauty of deep Henderson is very stunning."

A grand opening at the main campus is planned Sept. 24 to celebrate the new buildings. The event is set to follow school president Bart Patterson's State of the College address, planned at 4 p.m.

Visit nsc.nevada.edu.

— To reach Henderson View reporter Cassandra Keenan, email ckeenan@viewnews.com or call 702-383-0278. Find her on Twitter: @CassandraKNews.