Starting the spring 2023 semester, Washburn President, JuliAnn Mazachek, settled into her new office and position. Immediately, she began learning more about Washburn’s environment and speaking with organizations to get students’ opinions on different elements of campus.
To ensure we were up to date on the plans Mazachek has for Washburn, we set up monthly meetings where we asked questions and gathered more information about her vision for its future.
We mainly gathered information about the funding for the construction on campus that will be happening over the next few years. Most of this funding comes from donations of anonymous people and alumni.
Within the next couple of years, some departments will be switching buildings or renovated. With the School of Law moving out of Plass 1731, the education department will now be moved in. Additionally, by fall 2024, the Mabee Library will be relocated to Plass 1731.
Benton will be knocked down, leaving green space. The departments within Benton will be moved into a renovated Mabee Library.
Henderson will also be renovated with more of an open layout. A team of architects set up a meeting with professors and faculty in Henderson to begin designing plans. During the meeting, faculty spoke about wanting to keep the book space and privacy of their offices, yet the architects explained the need to keep an open layout for offices. Their main concern was to maintain platonic relationships between students and professors.
The architects are looking to make Henderson a space students would want to study and hang out at but this may limit space for professors. During construction, professors will still have classes in Henderson.
Another point of concern this semester was the Carole Chapel, which is still a huge question mark. It seems that neither Mazachek or faculty has a reason for its doors being locked. We asked Eric Grospitch, vice president for student life, and had a follow-up meeting with Mazachek, but this issue has yet to be solved. We are still receiving emails about whether the chapel will be open or have some type of hours set up, but it is unclear at this time.
Mazachek and her team have been working on a new strategic plan for the future of campus. The plan was originally set to send out this month, December 2023, but will now be released January 2024.
The plan will be centered around students’ ideas and thoughts, which is a good approach to changing the campus. This creates space for students to speak on the issues or non-issues they’ve had at Washburn and provide feedback to make the university better.
Mazachek has made huge strides toward the affordability of education. Last semester, she announced two new scholarships that gave students the ability to attend Washburn for free if they are Shawnee County residents. Faculty members’ dependents are also able to come to Washburn free of cost. Enrollment has gone up significantly this semester, which may be due to the scholarships and the increase of advertisements Washburn has released.
Edited by Karli Bayliss
