EVERETT — The beginning of spring quarter ushered in a new era at Everett Community College on Monday with hundreds of students settling into $48 million Gray Wolf Hall.
The 77,000-square-foot building will be home to EvCC humanities, social sciences and communications courses and the University Center of North Puget Sound, which offers 24 bachelor’s and master’s degrees from four-year universities.
Gray Wolf, which has wireless computer access, pushes technology to the forefront with interactive whiteboards and four video conference classrooms rooms for University Center students taking classes from instructors on other campuses.
In one classroom, computer screens and keyboards can be sunken into student desks and replaced by a flat tabletop with the touch of a remote control button.
Chairs and tables on wheels equipped with brakes are used to create flexible space.
“It’s a modern marvel,” said Tom Gaskin, an instructor at the college for 33 years, referring to the array of technology tools.
“I’m so excited about the versatility,” said Lolly Smith, a 21-year EvCC English instructor who was one of two teaching faculty to serve on a design committee. “The institutional commitment to bring some of these technologies to our fingertips is just so incredible.”
Gray Wolf is the second of four new academic buildings planned for EvCC. Together, they will cost about $200 million. Whitehorse Hall, a $27 million building for arts and sciences, opened in 2007. On the horizon is a new health care education center and a learning resource center with classrooms and a new library.
“When I first started taking classes at EvCC back in fall 2006 as a Running Start student, our campus looked way different,” said EvCC student body President Sarah Sandford said. “As someone who’s seen the campus change during the last two years, I’m really excited about Gray Wolf.”
It’s home to 129 classes for 2,266 students this quarter.
Gray Wolf is named after Gray Wolf Peak in eastern Olympic National Park. Several other EvCC buildings are named for popular mountainous spots in the region.
All instructors will have offices with windows on the north side of the building.
Seattle-based LMN Architects designed Gray Wolf as well as EvCC’s Whitehorse Hall, Comcast Arena at Everett Events Center and Seattle’s Benaroya Hall.
Ed Kingston, a psychology professor from Central Washington University, had yet to unpack many of his books Monday morning. He’s glad for the move from Everett Station to the main EvCC campus.
“I think our students are very excited to be on a college campus,” he said. “I think it makes the experience of completing a degree seem more meaningful.”
Faculty from other campuses — Western Washington University, Washington State University, Eastern Washington University, The Evergreen State College and Hope International University — also were getting settled Monday.
Bringing the University Center to EvCC’s campus will make it easier for freshman and sophomore EvCC students to meet with university advisers and faculty, take upper-division university classes on campus and transfer to earn bachelor’s or master’s degrees, said Christine Kerlin, executive director of the University Center.
Kerlin had hoped the college could have kept a presence after the 2009 school year at the Everett Station, but that’s not going to happen.
“With our budget cuts, we have had to give up Everett Station,” she said.
Gray Wolf Hall, a three-story structure, is the first EvCC building designed to meet standards set by the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.
Facilities Director Larry Price expects the college will save in energy costs for decades.
Many of the building materials are recycled or manufactured in the Pacific Northwest. A computer-controlled light system creates a variable pattern of light programmed to change throughout the day, week and season.
For Price, Gray Wolf has been a long process from the initial proposal more than six years ago to students walking the halls and typing on their laptops in a student lounge on Monday.
“It’s just gratifying to see the building is in use,” he said.
Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446, stevick@heraldnet.com.
Gray Wolf Hall
Size: 77,000 square feet
Cost: $48 million
Classrooms: 30
Offices: Space for 75 EvCC faculty and staff and partner institutions
Technology: Classrooms for multimedia instruction and video conference courses with partner colleges and universities.
Architecture and Interior Design: LMN Architects
General Contractor: Mortenson Construction
Dedication: 1:30 p.m. Friday at Gray Wolf Hall, 2000 Tower St., Everett
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