Gaige Technology & Business Innovation Building at Penn State Berks
By: Lisa R. Weidman
The new Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building is the academic home to the college’s Engineering, Business, and Computing division, and as such, it will empower the programs housed in the facility–and our student’s and faculty–to fulfill their potential for success and service.
Dr. Frederick H. Gaige: Visionary Leader, Scholar, Activist.
Dr. Frederick H. Gaige served as Penn State Berks Chief Executive Officer from 1984 until 2001 and transformed the campus into a residential college, serving the needs of students and citizens throughout this region. During his tenure, the campus doubled its enrollment and significantly increased its endowment and physical facilities. A Fulbright Fellow and South Asian scholar, Dr. Gaige’s legacy continues here today, and the Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building fulfills his vision for the college as a leader in the educational and business community.
A Home for Innovation and Education
The new Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building houses the college’s Business; Engineering; Information Sciences and Technology; and Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Management degree programs. It includes more than 63,000 square feet, making it the largest academic facility at Penn State Berks. Designed to complement the natural beauty and existing architecture of the campus, the three-story structure is as cutting-edge as the learning and discovery that will take place within it: A range of sustainability strategies, including rainwater collection and a heat-recovery system, will allow the building to be submitted for LEED certification as a “green” facility.
• Nine new classrooms, equipped with state-of-the-art technologies, will enable the college to offer new courses and enhance existing ones.
• Dedicated laboratory space will allow more sustained and sophisticated investigations.
• Fifty new faculty offices will make it possible for dedicated educators to spend more time working one-on-one with students and with each other.
• The Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Management Laboratory and Simulation Room allows students to practice food preparation and service for the college community.
Above all, the Gaige Building will make it possible for Penn State Berks to deepen partnerships with businesses and communities throughout the region. By providing space for three extraordinary initiatives–the Center for Entrepreneurship and Economic Development, the Learning Factory, and the Emerging Technologies and Business Intelligence Laboratory–the facility will help to make the campus an important leader for growth and innovation.
Creating the Gaige Building has been a top priority for Penn State Berks and the University, and institutional funds have been directed toward the $25.6 million construction project. It would not have been possible to break ground on the facility, however, without a $3 million estate gift from Reading native and Penn State alumnus Harold Pfreimer, for whom the engineering wing will be named.