With the start of the fall quarter, construction of the new $69 million Student Success Center is underway. Located at the intersection of North Perimeter Road and Village Drive, the three-story building will house important academic and professional resources for students, as well as communal space, according to university spokesperson Keegan Koberl.
“The Student Success Center will serve as a centralized hub for vital student services and multi-purpose rooms suitable for both instruction and small events,” Koberl wrote in an email to Mustang News.
Funding for the new 36,000-square-foot student hub started with a $20 million donation from The Wonderful Company, co-founded by Lynda and Stewart Resnick, according to Koberl.
As outlined in an informational presentation held on Oct. 29, some of the Student Success Center’s features will include outdoor study areas, interview rooms, private counseling rooms, classroom space and student lounges.
Most notably, Career Services is one of the student programs that will occupy the new building, Koberl wrote, meaning it will be relocated from its current location in the Student Services Building.
The building will also have spaces dedicated to assisting first-generation college students, according to university spokesperson Matt Lazier.
“The Student Success Center’s overarching goal is to support the holistic growth and professional development of all Cal Poly students with a special focus on the challenges that first-generation students may face as they adjust to college life,” Lazier wrote in an email to Mustang News.
Additional programs that will make the move to the Student Success Center include Cal Poly Scholars, TRIO Achievers, Educational Opportunity Program (EOP), La CASA, the Black Academic Excellence Center and the Dream Center, according to Lazier.
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Joining these programs is the Wonderful Scholarship program — a program started by the philanthropists and entrepreneurs Lynda and Stewart Resnick, co-founders of The Wonderful Company, that awards students from the Central Valley with scholarships of up to $40,000, and of which over 100 current Cal Poly students are a part of.
“Centering these programs near Building 15 and the new student housing will better connect students to the resources they need to thrive personally and professionally and enrich the student experience,” Koberl wrote.
In addition to helping students succeed, the Student Success Center was also designed to help the environment: the project is aiming for a LEED Gold certification. According to Koberl, this includes planting drought-tolerant plants and using low-carbon materials during construction.
The center will also have a Mustang Shuttle stop and accessible parking space for staff, although that number is currently unspecified, Koberl wrote.
In order to make up for the staff spaces lost due to construction, 48 new parking spaces were added to the parking lot adjacent to Building 70 off Truckee Road and Village Drive at the beginning of the fall quarter.
Truckee Road, Village Drive and North Perimeter Drive might be periodically impacted by construction, but efforts will be made to contain these impacts to academic breaks, Lazier wrote. The Student Success Center is scheduled to be completed in fall 2027, and updates on the project can be found on the Facilities Management and Development website.
This article was corrected to clarify that it was The Wonderful Company who gave the donation, not the founders.