Summer construction brings new life to campus

When students return for the fall semester, they will notice a lot of new attractions on campus. Over the summer, many construction teams will be hard at work to build several new projects. Kim Chaudoin, Director of Communication and Marketing, shed some light on each of the sites of construction and renovation. The first thing one might notice when walking through Bison Square will be the new Osman Fountain. Built to honor the Memory of Ty Osman II, a Harding student who died in a car accident last year, the fountain will also feature a baptistry. “We thought it was just a really fitting thing to have because our student’s faith is such an important part of what we do here at Lipscomb,” Chaudoin said. “Dr. Lowry has a vision of this being a place where if students decide they want to commit their life to Christ that they might come here and be baptized, right here in the middle of campus.” Students and faculty in the field of sciences can look forward to a new pharmacy and health sciences research facility, which will be located behind the McFarland building. The 15,000 square foot addition will include classrooms, labs and offices. “It’s our intent that just about any student that studies sciences will go through here at least once during their studies,” Chaudoin said. “We’re on target to finish by fall semester, so students should be able to use it soon.” At the Swang building, students are going to return to a new auditorium in Swang 108. The room has been stripped clean and will be receiving new seating,...

Construction for new fountain in Bison Square currently underway

A combination fountain and baptistry is now under construction in Bison Square, and the $300 thousand project is planned to beautify the space as well as make it more spiritually significant. For several years, there have been plans to create a new atmosphere to the space between Collins Alumni Auditorium and the Bennett Campus Center. Thanks to more than 150 donors, including Ray and Libby Jones and the parents of Ty Osman, the new Bison Square fountain centerpiece will be in a 16-by-24-foot pool and will be flanked by  two smaller, 6-by-15-foot foot fountains and pools. Lipscomb University president Dr. Randy Lowry said “the Bison Square centerpiece (will be) called the Osman Fountain.” Osman was a Harding student and member of the Woodmont Hills congregation who tragically lost his life in a car accident last March. His parents were alums of the university. Lowry said he hopes the new fountain will be a great renovation for the popular meeting area. “We hope it is the centerpiece of the whole reconstruction of Bison Square. This has been a wonderful place for students to gather for many, many years,” Lowry said. “But, we need to upgrade (the square), and I think a water feature will be something that causes people to come together.” Though they will look identical, one of the fountains will actually function as a baptistry. “When you think about Lipscomb you think about the sacrament of baptism being so important as people making a commitment to the Christian faith,” Lowry said. “We thought there might be something more sophisticated than the horse trough we’ve been using.” He described the baptistry as a place students will be able to...

Lake Lipscomb pond, fountain under construction behind Ken Dugan field

Wondering what the construction behind the baseball field is for? Are you hoping it’s more on-campus parking? Well go ahead and let those hopes down, because Lipscomb is transforming the area into a pond with a fountain to enhance the look of the university. “I do a lot of visiting to campuses across the nation, and I noticed that a lot of campuses have water features, and we have a lack of water features on campus. So I told Dr. Lowry that I thought that it would make a great pond,” said Tom Wood, Director of Campus Enhancement. Walkways, picnic tables, an iron fence and landscaping will eventually be added around the pond to create a child-friendly environment open to the surrounding neighborhoods. The fountain will shoot 30 feet in the air, and administration is discussing whether or not to add fish. “It will be a nice gathering area for students and neighbors,” Wood said. “It will be a great enhancement to the university, so I think it’s something that we will be very pleased with.” The area is not officially named yet, but Wood suggests  holding a contest and letting students submit name ideas. “Right now I call it Lake Lipscomb, but maybe we should let the students decide,” Wood said. The pond will still meet 100 year flood levels, so Granny White will not be flooded if a heavy rain comes. Phase two of this construction will be adding a combined fountain and baptistry to the middle of Bison Square. Wood is hoping to break ground  by next summer. Students have been very vocal about what enhancements...