On Budget and On Time
Every day a day closer for state-of-the-art Bellisario Media Center
The creation of the Donald P. Bellisario Media Center remains on budget and on time as it nears completion for the start of the 2020-21 academic year at Penn State.
The $43.5 million project will transform the oldest part of Willard Building, built in 1949, into a state-of-the-art facility encompassing four floors. The facility will be a hub for student media at the University — benefitting students in every major of the Bellisario College working in agency and corporate environments, film, journalism, television and more.
Alumni and benefactors were able to tour the facility and see the progress this fall, and during the spring semester the renovations will move along as the space comes to life with classrooms, collaborative spaces, laboratories and studios.
“The vision is to create a space that’s open, collaborative, creative and entrepreneurial,” said Dean Marie Hardin. “That’s a place where faculty and student can come together and do great things.”
Classrooms and offices in the showpiece facility will be functioning by
the start of fall for the 2020-21 academic year. Some studios, specifically for the award-winning “Centre County Report” student newscast, and the equipment room might not move fully until January 2021 to ensure a smooth transition.
A special event to showcase the facility and the integration of majors across the Bellisario College — and across campus — is being planned for Election Night in November.