Northeastern Illinois University held a ceremonial groundbreaking on its main campus in Chicago for a $125 million building that will house the university's Daniel L. Goodwin College of Education.
The university says the building will have 24 classrooms, 12 designated conference rooms and 80 private offices. It also will feature a second-floor roof deck with vegetation and seating, along with a bird-safe design with fritted glass and window film. The university will seek LEED Silver certification for the building.
The 189,673-square-foot building will include classroom space, laboratories, administrative and office space, and 48,735 square feet for general university use. The total cost of the project is about $125.4 million.
The Illinois Capital Development Board will oversee the project. The architect is SmithGroup.
The Education Building will ensure that Northeastern can meet the demands for classroom space, support services, education reform initiatives, and more efficient space utilization across campus.
"This project has been in the works for over 20 years, and we are thrilled that it is finally coming to fruition," said Northeastern Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs R. Shanye Cofer. "The new building will be a wonderful addition to our Main Campus and will inspire a whole new generation of education majors at Northeastern for years to come."
