SUU Holds Ribbon Cutting For New Campus Building
There's a new academic building on the campus of Southern Utah University. The 90,000 square foot Bristlecone Hall opened on Thursday, April 27th. The building will add 17 classrooms, seven labs, seven teaching and art studios along with eighty offices and workspaces to the university facilities. The effort to get the new building on campus was spearheaded by a southern Utah legislative delegations that included Utah State Senator Evan Vickers along with Senator Don Ipsom and State Representative Rex Shipp. The building was approved and funded by the Utah Legislature in March 2021, and the groundbreaking took place on June 25 of that same year. The project came in under budget thanks to the project management skills of Tiger Funk, assistant vice president for facilities management, and Ben Johnson, senior managing director of construction services. Bristlecone Hall will also be the home for the Dean's Office for the College of Preforming and Visual Arts, and will house the department heads for Filmmaking, Art and Design, History, Sociology and Anthropology along with Mathematics. Named after the bristlecone pine, and a longtime symbol of SUU, the building name represents what the University hopes students will gain within its walls. The ability to be resilient; to adapt, learn, and grow; and find ways to thrive, even in the midst of changing conditions. Bristlecone pines have a remarkable ability to thrive in favorable and unfavorable conditions, much like SUU’s students, faculty and staff. The new building preserved much of the Multipurpose Quad, leaving outdoor spaces and green areas. Inside the building, the Persistence of Time art installation also reflects the character of the campus and its surroundings, specifically the stunning and dramatic landscapes. Bristlecone Hall is located just south of the America First Event Center on the corner of 200 South and 800 West.