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Events Center

Student Activities and Events Center: Coming Soon!

We have a vision of a Student Activities and Events Center, the first new building on campus since 2002. The cost of the building is $8.4 million and our goal is to raise $3 million. We respectfully invite you to partner with us by giving a tax-deductible contribution to make this vision a reality, and to launch IU Kokomo into the next chapter.

The project is to construct a multi-purpose student activities and events center on the IU Kokomo campus. It will be located on the green space behind the Pavilion off Rebecca Lane in Kokomo. There will be ample parking. It is a 24,000 square foot facility, with a 10,918 two story gymnasium which can seat 1000 people for athletic events, and up to 350 people for special events and seated diners. Construction is estimated to be complete by Fall, 2020.

Watch the Descriptive Audio Version

Description of the video:

Susan Sciame-Giesecke, Chancellor, Indiana University Kokomo speaks to the camera outdoors: “Hello, I’m Chancellor Susan Sciame-Giesecke, the Chancellor of Indiana University Kokomo and I am so excited to here on this green pasture because I know within one year, it’s going to be transformed. We’re gonna see our brand new Student Activities and Events Center.”

Renderings of what the building will look like when completed is shown.

The Chancellor continues speaking: “This is a facility that will change and transform this campus in ways we can’t even imagine. It will be the home of our athletic teams and it will be the home for concerts and speakers for all of our students and events for our community. I’m pleased to be here today with Trequan and Hannah who are gonna share with you a little bit about what this building will mean for them.”

The camera pans out to show Hannah, the Chancellor, and Trequan standing in the field where the building will be built.

Trequan Spivey, Class of 2021, Sports Management, IU Kokomo speaks to the camera: “My name is Trequan Spivey. I’m a member of the men’s basketball team here at IU Kokomo. I’m a sophomore and my major is sports management. What this new Events Center will bring for us as athletes is it shows that all our hard work has gone noticed and that IUK is becoming bigger and better. And so it also brings a lot of, uh, students, families, and friends, and members of the community to come to our games to feel more like home here and I’m proud to call IU Kokomo my home.”

Hannah Bourne, Class of 2020, Communication and History/Political Science, IU Kokomo speaks to the camera: “Hi, my name Hannah Bourne and I’m a double major in history/political science and communication here at IU Kokomo. I’m also the student body president and I’m so excited to be a student at IU Kokomo right now in this period of growth. As we get ready to build this new Student Activities and Events Center, um, here in this field, I am just thrilled to see the exciting and creative events that we’re going to be able to host in this as the Chancellor mentioned: conferences. We can have increased space for our Student Research Symposium. We can bring things to IU Kokomo. We can get creative in new ways. It’s just so wonderful to see this happening as we prepare to celebrate 200 years of IU with the IU Bicentennial.”

More renderings are shown of campus.

The Chancellor speaks to the camera again as Hannah and Trequan stand beside her: “You’ve heard all about the building and you’ve heard from our students about what this building will mean for them. I think about this next year being the 75^th Anniversary of Indiana University Kokomo and I’m also thinking about the fact that this will be the first building we will build on this campus in 20 years. This is an 8.5 million dollar project and we’re trying to raise 3 million dollars to complete it. I sure would like to meet with each and every one of you to talk a little bit more about how you could contribute to this building. You’ll see a link on the bottom of this video if you’d like to contribute online. Thank you for your past support and we look forward to working with you in the future. And we look forward to seeing that new building in 2020.”

Iuk.edu/EVENTSCENTER

Indiana University Kokomo

Fulfilling the Promise

Iuk.edu/EVENTSCENTER

The new Student Activities and Events Center will transform the way we approach student life at IU Kokomo. This space allows us to provide bigger and more innovative and collaborative events as we are no longer limited by space. We hope to include even more students into the events that we plan. Our activities are student-driven and, often, student-led; we look forward to students accessing this space and making it their own.
Kate Aguilar, coordinator of student life and campus diversity

With a gym and activity center on campus, it will be easier for students to come to our games. A larger crowd, especially of our fellow students, will energize our teams, and motivate us to win in front of our home crowd. It will also help student athletes like me more easily balance academics and athletics.
Trequan Spivey, sophomore, men's basketball player and sports management major

A campus events center and gymnasium allows for a more vibrant student life experience. It provides a place for dances, concerts, exhibitions, intramural competition, speakers, convocations, and other activities that engage students, and gives them a place to belong on campus. Engaged students are more likely to stay in school to graduate, creating a more educated community and alumni base in the region.

A 23,000 square foot events center and gym on campus creates opportunities for our students to easily support their athletic teams, building school spirit and growing attendance at games. It also attracts high-quality student athletes —those who excel both on the court and in the classroom — to enroll on our campus.

A campus events center and gym provides learning space outside the classrooms, where students can participate in conferences, presentations, and team building. It also offers an exciting venue for new student orientation, and hands-on learning activities.

This isn’t just any activities center. With a few minor adjustments – carpet squares, curtains, and lights – it can be transformed into an elegant and inviting event space for the campus and community. We want this to be a place where people will come together for celebrations, collaboration, and inspiration!

Together, we can create a space where students feel at home. We will build camaraderie and school spirit and bring more and more people to athletic events on our campus. We can provide a place for events, concerts, lectures, and other learning experiences for students and the community alike. We will build an even more effective community gathering place for all.

There is a cost to providing this kind of space. Estimated costs for the events center are approximately $8.4 million. Our campus’ goal is to raise $3 million.

Please join us by becoming a part of the next chapter and leave your legacy. The time is now. Learn more about naming opportunities and how to contribute by calling the development office at 765-455-9485.

Whether it's volleyball games, the activities fair, Chancellor's Guild dinners, classes, or a basketball tournament, the Student Activities and Events Center will act as a hub of activity for our students, athletes, alumni, and the community