Construction Starts On Marquette’s New Nursing School

A game of musical chairs at Marquette University is yielding a new home for its growing College of Nursing.

Last week the university began construction work on the redevelopment of Straz Hall into a new home for the nursing program. The building became available following the relocation of the College of Business Administration into a newly-completed building at 1530 W. Wisconsin Ave.

The nursing school won’t simply get the business school’s hand-me-down, but will have a newly-expanded home as part of a larger strategy to grow the program.

The five-story building, 1225 W. Wisconsin Ave., will gain a new front door and large atrium that faces Marquette’s pedestrian-only quad between Wisconsin Avenue and Clybourn Street. Interior spaces will include an auditorium, flexible classrooms and a newly-created, wrap-around service center to support students. Labs will be interspersed throughout the building and a student break room will overlook the campus. Faculty and staff offices will be included on the upper floors.

“Every decision we made in shaping this facility was based on supporting student learning in a rapidly changing environment,” said university vice president Lora Strigens in a May announcement. The project was first announced in 2021 and expected to be completed in 2024.

The university announced a $1 million gift to support the project from alumni couple Micky and Jennifer Minhas earlier this year. Micky is a university trustee and engineering college graduate and Jennifer is a 1989 nursing program graduate. The Minhas’ gift builds on a $31 million, 2021 gift from another alumni couple, Darren and Terry Jackson. Terry is a 1987 nursing graduate and leads the campaign committee. Darren was chair of the university’s trustee board from 2009 to 2012 and previously served as CEO of Advance Auto Parts. The college also announced a $1.5 million private family foundation gift in fall 2021.

The donations will support a plan to graduate 5,000 nurses in the next decade by expanding the undergraduate program by 200 students and graduate program by 400 students. In press releases, the university reports the undergraduate program is ranked 29th in the country by U.S. News and World Report. The growth plan includes graduating 1,000 nurses from “diverse backgrounds,” becoming a leader in telehealth education and growing the number of Ph.D.-prepared faculty.

“It is vitally important that we increase the number of our Marquette nurses graduating in the Catholic, Jesuit tradition, and this generous gift from Jennifer and Micky significantly furthers our efforts,” said dean Jill Guttormson in May.

A building permit lists architecture firm HGA as the designer on the project. J.H. Findorff & Son is serving as the general contractor. The newly-expanded building is to include 103,274 square feet of space.

According to a press release, interior demolition is to occur in January and partial demolition of the structure in February. A crew is already clearing the perimeter of the site.

Straz Hall opened in 1951 and gained its current name in 1984. David A. Straz, Jr. was a 1965 graduate of the business school and later sold multiple banks to larger institutions. He made several major donations to Marquette. Straz Tower, 915 W. Wisconsin Ave., is also named for Straz, as are buildings on the Carthage College and University of Tampa campuses. A long-time Florida resident, Straz passed away in 2019 at the age of 77.

The game of musical chairs won’t stop with Straz Hall. The project will create a vacancy at the nursing program’s current home at Clark Hall. The 46,000-square-foot building is located at 530 N. 16th St. The university, in a press release issued earlier this month, said it has yet to identify a future use for the building through a master planning process. The current project is part of the 2015 campus plan.

Another major construction project is also starting on the campus. The university is working to expand the Helfaer Tennis Stadium and Recreation Center, 525 N. 16th St., into a full-fledged wellness facility as part of an $80 million project announced in March.

In city property records, Straz Hall is part of the same parcel, 1217-1225 W. Wisconsin Ave., as Marquette Hall.

The university has not disclosed a total cost for the Straz redevelopment, but building permits indicate the cost is likely to far exceed $12 million.

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