The Grand Valley State University Board of Trustees approved the
university’s Master Plan at its February 24 meeting at the Pew Grand
Rapids Campus. Trustees heard the plan is designed to embrace
technology and create an environment for diverse learners and advance equity.
The plan envisions a more cohesive footprint at
the Pew Grand Rapids Campus, providing more greenspace with a “campus
quad” near the Seidman Center, a student center/dining hall and a new
Center for Talent, Technology & Transformation known as Blue Dot,
among other improvements.
“The approval of the campus Master Plan does not represent a
commitment of capital, but does help focus the vision and anticipated
capital projects for Grand Valley campuses and aligns them to support
Reach Higher 2025,” said Trustee Elizabeth Emmitt. “It is exciting to
imagine how the campuses will evolve and think about the impact on our community.”
Blue Dot would serve as a keystone component of a planned renovation
and expansion of the Eberhard Center, which is located adjacent to the
Grand River in downtown Grand Rapids.
In Allendale, the plan shows a more pedestrian friendly layout with
more modern living centers, a renovated and expanded Kirkhof Center
and continued improvements of athletics facilities.
One major idea includes converting Campus Drive to focus on
pedestrian and bus traffic while diverting most traffic to Laker Drive.
The plan also calls for the phased replacement of Kistler, Copeland
and Robinson living centers, which are the original living centers
from the 1960s, with more modern facilities.
At the Health Campus in Grand Rapids, plans call for adapting and
renovating classrooms and other areas for new technologies and to
better accommodate nursing and health sciences curriculum.
The board also heard a presentation from Director of Public Safety
and Chief of Police Brandon DeHaan about safety measures and planning
on campus in the wake of the shootings at Michigan State University.
The presentation followed a February 23 campus safety briefing
DeHaan hosted with President Philomena V. Mantella and Sgt. William
O’Donnell, Grand Valley’s emergency manager.
In other board action:
- Jesse Bernal, chief of staff to the president and vice president
for Inclusion and Equity, said Grand Valley is leading Michigan in
advancing diversity and inclusion.Bernal presented
highlights from the Division of Inclusion and Equity's annual
report, stating Grand Valley's graduation rates for students of
color and underrepresented students surpass rates of those cohorts
at other Michigan public universities. Bernal said equity gaps on
campus are closing due, in part, to the coordinated approach to
inclusion and equity adopted in 2015.
- Trustees approved the reauthorization of four public charter
school academies, Chandler Woods Charter Academy, in Belmont; East
Arbor Charter Academy, in Ypsilanti; and two Michigan Mathematics
and Science Academy locations in Warren. Trustees also approved
appointment or reappointment of charter school board members.
- Trustees welcomed the return of Shelley Padnos and the new
appointment of Ronald Hall to the board. Padnos, an attorney and the
current executive vice president of PADNOS, a company known for its
innovative recycling process, previously served on the board from
2007-2014. Hall, a Southeast Michigan business leader and attorney,
is new to the board. Both were appointed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to
eight-year terms beginning February 2.
