Officials at Auburn University this week cut the ribbon on the new campus home for the College of Education.
The three-story, 167,000-square-foot building is located at the corner of Duncan Avenue and Samford Drive and will house all of the college’s programs that had previously been spread among multiple buildings.
Dean Jeffrey Fairbrother said the new facility will be for instruction and research, offering students access to modern classrooms and state-of-the-art lab spaces.
“From our start in 1915 as a Department of Education that offered a degree in Agriculture Education to our days in the Haley Center and now having four academic units offering 60 degree options, our college has come a long way,” Fairbrother said. “For 11 decades, Auburn’s College of Education has been a home to innovative thinkers and doers, focused on building a better future for all. And this state-of-the-art facility will help us live that mission as we embark on a new and bright chapter of improving lives here and beyond.”
According to a press release, the new building houses three College of Education academic units: Department of Curriculum and Teaching; Department of Special Education, Rehabilitation and Counseling; and Department of Educational Foundations, Leadership and Technology.
Auburn University President Chris Roberts and Board of Trustees President Pro Tem Jimmy Sanford attended the ribbon cutting ceremony. Roberts noted Auburn’s commitment to helping equip Alabama classrooms with bright, talented educators at a time when the state needs them most.
“Today, we’re celebrating a big step forward for the College of Education,” Roberts said. “With the collaborative classrooms and instructional labs and cutting-edge technology that I see all throughout the building, this facility strengthens our standing as one of the top education programs in the country.”
Samford said training school teachers, counselors and administrators fits perfectly in line with Auburn’s mission as a land grant institution.
“It is exciting to imagine the many generations to come who will find their inspiration, hone their craft and ultimately give back to their community as a result of the learning that will occur in this new building,” Sanford said. “With this facility—which allows the bulk of the College of Education to reside solely in one building — we are setting a cohesive and firm foundation for the future, furthering our great university’s land grant mission and providing our students a heightened academic experience second to none.”
