The remodeling of the main entrance to the Student Union will make Wright State more appealing to new students and will serve as a “one-stop shop” for current students, according to Facilities Planner Mark Horsley.
The completed product will include RaiderConnect and Admissions departments and will hopefully open in July, Horsley said.
“I think the university is trying to change the way that services are delivered to the students,” said Facilities Planning and Management staff member Wende Morgan-Elliot.
Horsley said that the goal of the $2.3 million project was to create more appeal among incoming students.
“It’s going to be a rebranding of Wright State for new students coming in,” Horsley said. “For incoming students, this is their first face of Wright State, and we want to make sure that what they see intrigues them enough to take a deeper look.”
Horsley said that the space would look very different in comparison to its current setup, and that the project was in the hands of Architect Robert Maschke.
“The space is going to be very dynamic,” Horsley said. “It’s really interesting.”
The colors of the remodeled area (which includes the entire front section of the Student Union) will consist of mostly green and gold, and the vestibule between the two sets of doors in the front entrance is being removed, creating a “wide open” area full of natural light, Morgan-Elliot said.
Horsley said the changes are targeted toward current students as well as new ones.
RaiderConnect will encompass Financial Aid, Parking and Transportation, the Office of the Bursar, Wright1 Card and several other departments within the university in an attempt to create a “one stop shop” for current Wright State students, according to Horsley.
Instead of receptionists assigned to the specific departments, “Generalists” will be available that will be cross-trained to represent all of the departments within RaiderConnect. These employees will be able to answer questions, or refer students to a colleague with a better knowledge of the matter, according to Morgan-Elliot.
