Collocation benefits VCU students, Richmond
The Monroe Park Campus Addition combines business and engineering students under one roof
Garima Prasai knew she wanted to attend business school. She just wasn’t sure where.
Before high school graduation in 2005, she and her mother visited Virginia Commonwealth University to see what the university and the School of Business had to offer.
Dean Michael Sesnowitz invited Prasai to his office where he unfurled giant blueprints of a planned new home for the School of Business and talked about the transformation that was on the horizon.
“His excitement was absolutely contagious,” Prasai said. “I don’t recall if I was more struck that day by the magnitude of how cool the new business building was going to look or whether I was awed by the ‘down-to-earth’ dean, in whose office I was sitting, chatting with so casually. Maybe it was a combination of the two, but I remember going home and thinking ‘VCU is it,’”
Now as a junior pursuing a double major in accounting and finance on the CPA track, Prasai is thrilled by what VCU has accomplished. The Monroe Park Campus Addition, where Snead Hall for the School of Business, East Hall for the School of Engineering and the VCU Brandcenter are located, opened in January.
“On the first day of classes, I walked in and was blown away not only by how beautiful the building was, but how technologically advanced the study rooms were,” she said. “It’s amazing how a new facility can make all the difference. People are so much more focused and serious about their classes. The openness of the learning environment allows students to see one another studying, and it has created a peer-motivating learning environment and has led to a greater exchange of ideas.”
That type of collaboration spurred the development of the Monroe Park Campus Addition and the collocation of the schools of Business and Engineering. The idea originated over a golf game between business and community leaders Steve Markel and Bill Goodwin. They envisioned business and engineering students learning side-by-side to create well-rounded graduates ready to play a pivotal role in the Richmond workforce.
“The combination of a new campus for VCU and redeveloping a large part of the city as well as bringing business and engineering together really made the project a winner,” said Markel, who is the chairman of the School of Business Foundation Board of Trustees and vice chairman of the Markel Corp.
When Markel served on the VCU Board of Visitors, he said, the group struggled with crafting a workable plan to improve the business school facilities.
“Until this plan came together, none of the others got any traction,” he said. “A key part of the new business school plan was the creation of a School of Business Foundation to bring an important group of supporters together to seriously engage with VCU to help develop the VCU School of Business for the long-term future.”
The School of Engineering Foundation Board of Trustees collaborated with the business board to work toward a common goal. Both boards, which are composed of some of the top business leaders in the area, were instrumental in raising awareness and money for the project, said Peter L. Wyeth, vice president for University Advancement.
“These board members fostered unbelievable support for this project, as well as long-term championship of the two schools among local businesses, the community, and our alumni and friends through their dedication and hard work,” he said.
Paul Rocheleau, a founding member of the School of Engineering Foundation board of trustees and its current president, also stressed the board members’ role in supporting the school by helping to ensure that it runs efficiently and effectively while producing outstanding graduates, which will benefit, in turn, the community.
“As you can imagine, many of the foundation executive committee members have dedicated a lot of time to ensure the program has grown to the level it is today,” said Rocheleau, who is managing director for Cary Street Partners and is responsible for investing the foundation’s endowment. “We are now in a wonderful position to have excellent facilities, an established accredited program and improving financial resources.”
The board, Rocheleau said, wants this growth — in the quality of new students, faculty and programming — to continue.
“We are very encouraged by the attractive prospects for new graduates, increased student applications for 2009 and continued corporate support for the program,” he said. “The new building represents another key milestone along a path to success, but most importantly the success will be driven by the faculty and students who occupy the new building.”
The students, for their part, are ripe for the challenge.
“The most exciting thing about the building is the change in itself. The change has created a momentum of students who are excited about learning,” Prasai said. “What this has given me, and every other student at VCU, is a chance to highlight our best efforts. This building stands as a belief in our potential success, and we will work hard to reciprocate and make everyone proud.”
To support the School of Business, contact Ken Blaisdell, executive director of the School of Business Foundation, at (804) 828-1487 or kcblaisdell@vcu.edu. To support the School of Engineering, contact Brian Thomas, vice president of the School of Engineering Foundation, at (804) 827-0067 or bsthomas@vcu.edu.