The grand opening of Freeman Hall’s $10-million addition was hailed Thursday not as the end of a construction project but as the birth of a new era for Clemson University as it journeys toward preeminence.
The three-story addition along Fernow Street is among the first major projects to be completed since a building boom on and near campus has sent battalions of work trucks streaming into Clemson on a daily basis.
At 21,000 square feet, the Freeman Hall addition gives the industrial engineering department room to grow at a time of explosive growth. Enrollment rose more than 161 percent in 10 years, landing at 546 students as of 2014.
The addition is opening as international markets grow at a rapid clip, creating tremendous business opportunities for corporations worldwide, including in the United States. The growth is increasing the need for industrial engineers who understand the unique challenges specific to each nation.
Clemson officials expect the addition to enhance research capabilities, while helping create the next generation of industrial engineering leaders. Top students and faculty members from around the world will be attracted to the new offices, collaboration spaces, conference rooms and state-of-the-art auditorium, university officials said.
Innovative financing minimizes the impact of construction costs on taxpayers. The university is putting up the money for the addition and the industrial engineering department has begun to pay it back with proceeds from an online master’s program that reaches students from South Carolina to India. Read Full Story »
Paul Alongi, College of Engineering and Science
