Black Hawk College has completed a major addition and renovation at one of its buildings. 20,000 square feet have been added to 'Building 1' on the Quad Cities campus in Moline, and 68,000 square feet of existing space has been renovated.
President Tim Wynes says this was a necessary step for the college to move into the future.
"This space isn't 19th century space. They used to say that a classroom is a teacher, a piece of chalk and a blackboard. They don't like that anymore: students come in and learn in a variety of ways. They do small groups, they do some lecture, they do multimedia, they're online talking to each other and they take assignments back and work in different ways. These classrooms are a blank slate."
The changes include a courtyard for students to study and relax in, new offices, as well as larger and more modern classrooms.
"We've added three floors of new classrooms as well. There are learning studios just like you'd find at Augustana, St. Ambrose, or the Quad Cities campus of WIU. They are meant to take the modern student, not just this year but ten years down the road, to be successful."
The project started two years ago and cost Black Hawk College $17.8 million to complete.