The renovations include 66,000 square feet of educational spaces dedicated to e-sports, cybersecurity, forensics, industrial and preventative maintenance, mechatronics and more. The college also built a 4,000 square-foot space solely for welding, fabrication and grinding.
Construction of the project started last year and it opened this month for fall classes. The total cost for the project was $29 million.
Steven Frommelt, executive vice president of finance and administration, said the facility will help prepare students for the workplace after they graduate.
“It'll be the current technology that we have in the working world, so they're able to come in and have a practical application. And being the lowest cost provider of the education in our area, we're proud to be able to offer services to our students in the community,” Frommelt said.
Frommelt also said the renovations could be used in future outside programs and classes such as College for Kids. The renovation not only updates the building but provides for future flexibility on technology such as AI.
“This space is built in a way that if we miss something, we are able to then adapt accordingly,” Black Hawk College President Jeremy Thomas said.
Thomas said he expects students will get a lot from the facilities in coming years.
"I hope students are excited," Thomas said. "In fact, I know they will be. They're getting to get trained in a world-class facility. We're investing in them. We're investing in the Quad-Cities. So this allows for our career and technical area to really have an outstanding facility."
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