The Griffin Foundation Donates to New Computer Science Building at Colorado State
Colorado State University’s new $12.9 million student-funded Computer Science building has received a $500,000 donation from The Griffin Foundation of Fort Collins.
Set to open its doors to students in January of 2009, the 45,000-square-foot computer science building is located in the heart of campus at the crossroads of the CSU plaza across from the Lory Student Center and Morgan Library. The Griffin Foundation gift includes:
– lobby furnishings and a flat panel display;
– equipment and furnishings throughout the building including student lounges outfitted with state-of-the-art equipment;
– classrooms equipped with video conferencing systems, audio visual equipment, computers and acoustic panels; and
– furniture for all 30 faculty offices including the Information Science and Technology Center.
"The building was designed with public spaces, labs and special collaboration areas that will enhance student activities and learning," said Darrell Whitley, chairman of the Computer Science Department. "The Griffin donation will allow us to furnish and equip those spaces in a way that will make them even more inviting and useful to students."
"We are pleased to support furnishing and equipping this beautiful new building that will provide an important resource with access to all students enrolled at Colorado State University," said David Wood, president and chairman of The Griffin Foundation.
The Griffin Foundation was founded in 1991 by Pat Griffin, a pioneer in retail self-service gasoline stations under the Gasamat name. Following Griffin’s death in 1993, his estate established three principal missions for the foundation – higher education, performing arts and health care. Since 1993, The Griffin Foundation has made grants totaling more than $8.25 million. The foundation has had a steadfast commitment to Colorado State including a $2.5 million gift to Morgan Library and $2 million donation to the Edna Rizley Griffin Concert Hall at the University Center for the Arts.
"We are extremely grateful to The Griffin Foundation for their enduring support of academic programs on our campus," said Rick Miranda, dean of the College of Natural Sciences. "This latest donation to our world-class Computer Science building will impact students from all over campus and will help launch a new era of computational sciences here at Colorado State."
The opening of the computer science building comes at a time as the field is expanding and becoming more laboratory-intensive. Three labs on the main floor include a lab that will be available to students 24 hours per day, seven days per week. The building will house the Department of Computer Science, part of the College of Natural Sciences.
The Department of Computer Science, ranked in the top 60 programs of its kind in the nation, was founded at Colorado State in 1973 and began with just eight professors. Today, it has grown to 23 full-time faculty positions and about 275 computer science majors. For more than 25 years, the department has been located off campus at 601 Howes St.
More information about Colorado State’s College of Natural Sciences can be found at http://www.natsci.colostate.edu/; the Department of Computer Science is at http://www.cs.colostate.edu/.
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