COMMONS
Student Housing and Dining Facility
2018
l
l
a
F
—
s
t
n
e
d
si
e
R
o
t
Opened
A large group of Life University faculty,
staff, alumni and friends, as well as
honored guests from the community,
came out on Thursday, October 11
for the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for
The New Commons student housing
and dining facility on campus. This
99,000 square-foot facility opened
to residents at the beginning of the
Fall Quarter, on schedule, and it
accommodates 362 students in its
five stories.
As part of the University’s 2020
Vision established in 2006 by its
Board of Trustees, The New Commons
will increase living, dining and
recreational/leisure facilities to
accommodate an anticipated growth
in both undergraduate and graduate
enrollment in the next few years. Also
a part of the 2020 Vision strategic plan,
the University’s goal is an enrollment
of 3,000 undergraduate and 1,000
graduate students by 2020, as well as
an enrollment of 2,000 in the College
of Chiropractic, with a waiting list.
President Rob Scott, D.C., and
Chancellor Guy Riekeman, D.C., gave
remarks to the attendees, emphasizing
the importance of the facility in the
growth of the campus and in what
the building conveys to those who
live there.
“The four resident floors are titled
Give, Serve, Love and Do,” explains
Riekeman, referencing the Life
University founding ethos of Lasting
Purpose. “Within these four floors
are 12 wings, and each of them is
dedicated to someone who we think
is a visionary and did something to
change the world, such as Nelson
Mandela, Maya Angelou, Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr. and more. There are
Right: Cutting the ribbon for The New
Commons. From L-R: Dr. Marc Schneider,
VP of Student Affairs; Mr. Bill Jarr, EVP of
Finance; Dr. Rob Scott, President; Dr. Kevin
Fogarty, Board of Trustees Chairman; Dr.
Guy Riekeman, Chancellor; Mr. Larry Riddle,
Facilities Management Director; Mr. Terry
Rubke, T.K. Rubke & Co.; Mr. Mike Collins,
Collins Cooper Carusi Architects
Below right: Members of the
Life University Board of Trustees,
administration, faculty and staff look on as
the ribbon is cut for The New Commons
student housing and dining facility.
not only quotes from these individuals,
but information about their history
and the impact they made in the
world. It is our hope that the students
who live in these wings will become
inspired to change the world and make
a difference.”
As part of construction for the new
facility, approximately half of the old
Commons buildings on the southeast
side of Barclay Circle (the South Cobb
Dr. entrance of the campus) were
demolished. LIFE currently has one
other on-campus student housing
facility (LIFE Village Retreat), as well
as the main campus eatery (Socrates
Café). The dining facility is a full-
service eatery, much like Socrates
Café, with an outdoor seating area. The
menu is performance-based to cater
to the student-athletes who will live at
the facility. There is a late-night grill
and pizza menu as well.
Future plans include two more phases
of construction that include the
demolishing of the remaining old
Commons buildings to make room
for more innovative spaces to further
enhance and grow the not-so-little
University that is changing the world.
Alumni.LIFE.edu | 2018
7