by Emily Burner
A rotunda dome and tower roof made of
shining copper dot the skyline of Shenandoah’s
main campus. Soaring columns and decorative
balusters adorn an elegant colonnade. An inside atrium,
awash in natural light, showcases clean lines and welcoming
areas where students meet and study. Shenandoah’s Health & Life
Sciences Building anchors the south corner of main campus, providing
a state-of-the-art facility for the natural sciences and health care education.
“Our vision is to be nationally recognized for forward-thinking programs that produce
competitive and purposeful graduates,” said President Tracy Fitzsimmons, Ph.D. “This
building meets all of those goals.”
“The future of health care is about keeping people healthy,” Fitzsimmons continued. “We
think it’s what health care will look like in the years to come. So the fact that our students
learn in a facility built with this forward-thinking philosophy in mind helps them
prepare for this emerging practice environment.”
Replete with standard and active-learning classrooms, meeting and study spaces,
laboratories and lounges, the 71,000-square-foot building will serve the university’s
athletic training, biology, chemistry, nursing, respiratory care and pre-health
programs. The Health & Life Sciences Building also houses more than 50
offices for faculty and staff.
The three-story building is topped with a tower modeled after the tower on
Howe Hall in Dayton, Virginia, harkening back to Shenandoah’s historic
roots in that area. The tower boasts an impressive stained glass window that
shines with the university crest, depicting the mountains and rivers of the
institution’s home in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley.
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