A public ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the completion of renovations to Whiting Field House was held last Thursday, Sept. 4, at 2 p.m. outside the north doors of the field house.

Tours were also given as President Farley and several others were in attendance for the event.

One of the university’s oldest buildings, according to a press release from University Relations, Whiting was built in 1928.

With new basketball and volleyball courts, as well as team locker rooms, faculty offices for the School of Nursing, offices for the Sports Information Department, an 80-seat classroom, a seminar room, a simulation lab and equipment for nursing students, a trophy case, as well as a 9,258 square foot workout facility, the newly remodeled building is a welcomed gift to Washburn athletic teams. (story continued below)

Media credit: Brian Dulle

“It’s a tremendous facility and something we’ve been working on since we first got the job eight years ago,” said Craig Schurig, head football coach. “We’re very glad that it’s such a great project and we really feel that it’ll help us develop our current players and then also with recruiting because it should be a premiere strength and conditioning facility in the country.”

While the original building was nice, Schurig said he liked the new Whiting because of the space available as well as the organization of the equipment, which allows for multiple teams to work out at the same time.

Lady Blues soccer head coach Tim Collins agreed, saying in the past, teams had to be more creative to get their workouts completed because of the lack of equipment and availability.

“The old weight room pales in comparison,” said Collins. “You know it’s the difference between something that was woefully inadequate and something is useful for every sport. And now multiple sports can be in there at the same time and it’s a safe area.

“We are able to do ever so much more than we were able to do in the past. We have more room, we can give more individualized attention to our student-athletes as far as in the offseason. It’s a terrific boon and a terrific bonus.”

While the complete remodeling process did cost $6.9 million and lasted for more than a year, many Washburn athletes including senior soccer player Angela Wiseman believed it was worth the money and time.

“Oh yeah, definitely,” she said. “I mean not only is it really nice for us to get to use now, but it’s also going to attract other players to Washburn just because our facilities have improved so much.”