Three Rivers to break ground on new classroom building

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- Three Rivers College will hold a groundbreaking ceremony for its new Humanities and Social Sciences building at 11:30 a.m. Dec. 18 in Poplar Bluff, according to a news release from the school.

The event will mark the start of construction of a the 38,000-square-foot, two-story classroom building, the release said.

When completed, the structure will include the college's first lecture hall, state-of-the-art classrooms and a Federal Emergency Management Agency-certified safe room capable of withstanding 200 mph winds, the release said. The building will be on the east side of campus by the Academic Resource Commons and Westover Administration Building, according to the release.

Jonathan Atwood, coordinator of media services, said in an email to the Southeast Missourian that the college will benefit from the added elbow room.

" ... We're nearly out of space at the Poplar Bluff campus. We're loading up all of our classes that we can and we're still running short on space," Atwood wrote. "This classroom building will not only give us some breathing room as far as space -- quite a lot of it -- but it will also allow us to make better use of technology in the classroom, through the improved classroom spaces, etc. Not only will this allow us to serve more students in the area, but to give them better classes, and to free up cramped space elsewhere."

Construction is expected to cost $6.3 million and be completed in spring 2015. The road leading from Three Rivers Boulevard to the Westover Building will be two-way for the duration of construction, the release said.

The project will be partially funded by a $2.6 million federal FEMA safe-room grant, with the remainder provided through fundraising efforts of the Three Rivers Endowment Trust and a bond issue.

The Three Rivers Endowment Trust is a not-for-profit organization designated by the college to receive and manage gifts on the institution's behalf, the release said. It acts as a trustee for donations to ensure gifts are distributed the way the donor specifies, the release said.

rcampbell@semissourian.com

388-3639

Pertinent address:

Three Rivers College, Poplar Bluff, Mo.