Kogod Business School’s new $14 million dollar building is now open to students and faculty.
The 20,000-square-foot building features three student lounge areas, three break-out rooms, and seven classrooms. The school’s expansion also reveals the state-of-the-art Financial Services and IT lab equipped with cutting-edge Dell XPS desktop computers and a behavior lab. Furthermore, the Kogod Career Service Center is in the final stage of completion.
The new building is the first structure on American University’s campus to be funded entirely with philanthropic money. The structure was partially subsidized by Robert and Arlene Kogod, for whom AU’s business school is named.
The project has already benefited students in many different ways. For one, the supplementary classes facilitate business students with their already hectic schedules. Over 800 business students are now able to take all of their required classes in Kogod.
“The classrooms certainly reduce the stress for scheduling courses,” said Lara Kline, Kogod Director of Marketing and Communication.
Kogod students have in the past had to register for courses in such buildings as Ward, the School of Public Administration’s main building. Now, they have the advantage of working within the school. And they feel a lot better about it.
“I think the additional classes help make the school feel more cohesive,” said Evan Fedeli, a junior in Kogod..
What’s more is the software that is included in all of the classroom’s computers. In a significant way, Thomson Financial group, now fused with Reuters, graciously outfitted the school’s computers with a special Thomson financial program. The group has dedicated its financial services to many organizations and was one of the world’s largest information companies.
According to Kline, the program offers students a virtual wall-street trading floor experience without filter and no adaptation of data. The Thomson program also exponentially increases the amount of data available to students.
When asked about the computing experiences, most Kogod business students are pleased.
“I think most of us, including myself, find the computers to be very fast and able to run programs like Vista easily,” Fedeli said. “They have all the software business students need. Oh and the Dell XPS computers in the IT lab are awesome too.”
Each classroom is furnished with big desk spaces, room for computing, and two projectors for professors to use when presenting material. Out of all the classrooms, the lecture classes are the most popular and appealing.
“I have taken classes in almost all of the buildings on AU’s campus,” Fedeli said. “I can say without a doubt that the two new lecture rooms are the best on campus.”
While the classes have garnered a lot of attention from business students, it is the new behavior lab that has attracted non-business teachers and students. Located at the lower level of the building, the behavior lab performs research studies pertaining to psychology and marketing.
“The lab consists of 12 carols that divide the students who decide to participate,” Kline said. “It’s a great lab to study different behaviors of students. It is always interesting to see what approaches they take.”
The behavior lab is open to different school’s professors or students to use. In the past, many schools have been known to keep their rooms separate.” It’s a shame when colleges hold on tightly to their own resources,” Fedeli said.
There is one section in Kogod that does hold onto its resources though. It is the new Center for Career Development facilities. The center is designed to solely assist business students with their future careers. According to the website, the center helps students transition to a new career or find talented candidates for an organization.
During construction, the workers made an effort to work with the original resources. Green steps were taken with the building. “The old theatre that used to stand in place of Kogod was not completely demolished,” Kline said. “The construction workers continued to use the general framework while recycling stone, wood, and pavement.”
And now Kogod stands twice as large as the early Kogod school. The college continues to provide business education as one of the top 50 business schools in the US according to the Wall Street Journal. It hopes to keep on engaging students in hands-on real world projects, exchange and study abroad opportunities, clubs, and more
The new school is slated for a grand opening this April.
http://kogod.american.edu/ArtPage.cfm?ItemID=221&AudienceID=8
Lara Kline
Director of Marketing and Communications
kline@american.edu
202-885-1891
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