Southwestern College broke ground on its new University Center on Wednesday, allowing students to obtain a four-year degree from partnering universities while never having to leave Chula Vista.
Educational leaders, representatives from the City of Chula Vista, and San Diego State University broke ground on the new University Center. The new instructional complex will have 80,000 square feet of classroom and support facilities that will house classrooms or Schools of Business and Technology, language and literature, and arts, communication, and social sciences.
According to SWC Governing Board President Roberto Alcantar, the University Center is “considered one of the most significant projects of Propositions R & Z”. The University Center Costs approximately $107 million, funded by Proposition Z.
On Nov. 4, 2008, by majority election of the Districts' registered voters, $389,000,000 in general obligation bonds (Proposition R) were authorized to be issued and sold for the benefit of the District. Proceeds from the bonds are to be used for the construction, reconstruction, and/or rehabilitation of facilities.
In November 2016 voters of South Bay passed Proposition Z, a $400 million general obligation bond for Southwestern College, allowing the college to move forward on critical classroom and infrastructure renovations.
“Southwestern College is undergoing an amazing transformation. Thanks to all community members who voted for the two bond measures, what you see here are our steps towards building that college that our students truly deserve in this community,” Alcantar said.
The University Center is one of the last remaining projects funded by Proposition R&Z.
“We still have the major Student Union complex, our landscaping nursery technology, and the relocation expansion of our automotive technology program to our Otay Mesa campus. When these final projects are completed, we'll have successfully improved our college community to the tune of nearly $1 billion. That's pretty remarkable,” Alcantar said.
College officials in September opened a new 16,000-square-foot building dedicated to information technology infrastructure and related technology operations support. The building it once occupied will be demolished to make space for the new University Center.
Southwestern College Superintendent/President Mark Sanchez said “this is a perfect complement to the programs we already have in place with our partners”, which include San Diego State University, National University, and Point Loma Nazarene University, which already offer bachelor's degree programs at the Chula Vista Campus.
“We're expanding the conversations to include UC San Diego and National University to expand the current opportunities they offer on our Chula Vista campus. Once UC San Diego comes to teach classes here in Chula Vista, this will be the first time in our history that we have a presence of UC San Diego in the South County,” Sanchez said.
College officials expect the construction of the University Center to be completed by the Fall of 2024.
