By: Sydney Umstead, News Editor
In July, Canisius University was awarded a $1 million grant for a new student success center, the catch: This success center will cause the reconstruction of one floor, or a portion of one, inside the Andrew L. Bouwhuis Library.
This is an ongoing story.
The grant comes from the New York State Higher Education Capital Matching Grant Program (HECAP). A press release from July 1 titled “Canisius to Construct Student Success Center” states that the grant will be used to “construct and equip a Student Success Center in the Andrew L. Bouwhuis, SJ, Library.”
Renovations are tentatively scheduled to begin in September. As The Griffin currently reports on this story, the process is seemingly still in its early stages and is being handled by the Office of The President. The Griffin reached out for a statement and currently has a tentative meeting with the president of Canisius, Steve K. Stoute, in October to address this matter.
In the release, Stoute states that the center is important to the university, as it coincides with the Answer the Call initiative that was unveiled last year. Stoute states in the piece, “This funding will enable the university to establish a multifaceted support center, dedicated to enhancing the academic, social, and professional development of our students.” However, no updates have been made explaining what exactly will happen to the existing areas of the library that the center will take the place of.
The current Student Success Center at Canisius is located at OM 013, and called the “Griff Center for Student Success.” The mission is stated as being to “serve our transformative learning community in the spirit of cura personalis, care for the whole person, through opportunities and services which develop and empower students to achieve academic and career success.” Part of these programs include, but are not limited to: academic achievement, career development, first-year and transfer programs and student success teams.
The new Student Center is drafted to focus on three specific areas, which are, as stated in the press release, the “Academic Achievement Team, which provides advisement to first-year students, undecided students and student athletes. The Career Development Team, which assists students in career counseling, resume and cover letter writing, job and internship searches; and the Student Accessibility Services Team, and provides accommodations for students with disabilities.”
Furthermore, these new renovations will, as WGRZ pointed out, take a “floor or portion of a floor” of the library and will also include space for the Academic Mentoring Center and Canisius Cares.
The New York Heritage Collection has stated on its website that as of 2024, “the Canisius University Archive has been closed.” It is unclear if this correlates to the changes soon to take place to the top floor of the library where the archives were previously stored.
In August, another press release was created titled “Canisius to Elevate Student Success.” It includes the Student Success Center as the expansion of educational opportunities under the strategic plan. There has been no word on why the library, specifically, was chosen for the location, or what it will do with the library’s collection.
No updates have yet been made regarding these renovation plans, and The Griffin reached out to library staff who said they had no further information about these plans.
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