Construction of the S.T.E.M. complex will be completed in December 2009. (Photo by Lilach Assayag)
The Septa bus unloaded passengers and a line of bundled-up college students dashed along the muddy asphalt walkway, rushing to their early morning classes.
Midway through the high-fenced path, a gate unfolded and obstructed their way to allow a yellow cement mixer to cross between the construction’s site on the right to the faculty parking area on the left.
Since last summer, visitors to Main Campus of Delaware County Community College have been able to witness the construction progress of the environmentally friendly Science Engineering and Math building.
This facility, along with the Tech building on the other side of campus, is a part of college’s S.T.E.M. Complex, which – unlike a popular assumption among the students – has nothing to do with stem cell research.
Besides being a top-notch academic facility with a coffee bar and a gym, the building – due for completion in December 2009 – will be “green” from construction to maintenance, with a vegetated (or green) roof and daylight harvest technology.
The complex, and especially the science building, is an answer to a nationwide call to improve upon education in the science and technology majors and produce more competent graduates in those fields, said college president Jerry Parker.
“The only way we’re going to fill in the gap [in science education] is by extending the pipeline and getting more people to be interested in engineering and science,” Parker said.
Going “green” with the building “just made sense,” he said, since it sets an example for students, protects the environment and yields some economical return through energy and water-efficient systems.
Green building, as defined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, is a “resource-efficient” endeavor, which, in comparison to “conventional building,” recycles more building materials and conserves more energy and water.
“Higher education tends to be at the cutting edge of sustainable design, more so than the commercial sector or the healthcare sector,” said Scott Sullivan, the complex’s project manager at Burt Hill, the architectural firm hired for the project.
The science building, Sullivan said, will feature productive reuse of various materials such as recycled steel beams, recycled gypsum in the dry walls, recycled newspapers in the acoustical ceiling panels and recycled plastic fiber from soda bottles in the carpets.
Students on Main Campus entrance path were delayed by a cement truck crossing the site last semester. (Photo by Lilach Assayag)
The green roof is “a roof that has a layer of soil that supports plant life,” Sullivan said. The vegetation will “prevent rain water from going down the storm-water drains and soak up the heat from the sun during the summer.”
This energy efficient system, he adds, will fill utilitarian purposes rather than recreational ones and will not be accessible to students.
“You can’t have students take courses and talk about the environment and stewardship of the environment and then have a building that is harmful to the environment,” said John Agar, dean of the mathematics, science and engineering division at the college.
The interior design, Agar said, is based on current educational needs of the science and technology programs, and will include multifunctional labs. The programs’ faculty and the architects, he said, worked closely to achieve optimum use of the available space.
Many of the engineering and science faculty, he added, would be able to demonstrate elements of their courses through the various systems of the complex. “We’re hoping that the new building will give us an advanced high-tech look that would attract more students,” Parker said.
Companies like Sunoco, Exelon and Boeing, he said, have been closely involved with the college’s S.T.E.M. initiative in providing grants and guidance as to the skills needed for high level jobs out in the workforce.
“The structure alone doesn’t contribute to education as much as teachers do,” said Youjah Tramon, 26, who majors in accounting at the college. Access to new equipment, he believes, is the key to attract and motivate students.
Chris Riccuti, 18, who is now in his first semester majoring in natural science was happy to hear he may be around to enjoy the new facility. Besides being a motivating and exciting environment to study in, Riccuti believes that the complex will also improve the image of the college.
As for the future, the old labs and the vacant library space will be “repurposed” for student support services and student lounges, according to Parker, with a grand plan to connect the third floors of the academic building and the Founder’s Hall building with a bridge over the courtyard.
This plan, however, will not be initiated before the completion of the complex.
For more information see www.dccc.edu/stem
