Our Changing Campuses

Georgia Southern Growth Brings New and Future Buildings, Renovations

If you haven’t visited the Georgia Southern campuses in the past few years, chances are they’ll look different.

With funding from the state of Georgia and several historic gifts from devoted supporters, the University has built impressive structures to support academics, athletics and outreach. Some of the buildings are the largest the University has ever built. And more are on the way.

As the writers for Georgia Southern Magazine talk with alumni around the world — some of whom haven’t set foot in Statesboro or Savannah long before the turn of the century — they always ask about the campus. It’s a unifying memory. It’s the “where” that anchors the stories and exploits of their college careers.

For those who can’t get back to campus in the near future, here’s a roundup of the campus changes that are happening right now.

The Armstrong Campus in Savannah

The Junior Achievement Colonial Group Discovery Center

When Georgia Southern University student Hannah Whitehead first walked into the new Junior Achievement (JA) Colonial Group Discovery Center, she was in awe as she took in the sight of a small-scale Savannah community before her.

“When I walked into the space, I was so shocked and inspired by it all, and I stopped to think about what sixth through eighth-graders would do when they walked into that space,” said Whitehead, a senior communications arts student from DeKalb County, Georgia.

JA Discovery Centers blend key components of education to create state-of-the-art learning facilities where middle-school students apply concepts they learn in the classroom in a 360-degree authentic and immersive experience. Upon arrival, these students become part of a simulated version of their hometown within the JA BizTown and JA Finance Park programs.

Micro versions of local storefronts such as Comcast, Amazon, Gulfstream, Publix, Chick-fil-A, Enmarket, Georgia Ports Authority, Georgia Power, St. Joseph’s/Candler, South State Bank, United Way of the Coastal Empire, Georgia Southern University and others are set up to resemble the greater-Savannah community.

To bring this space to life, JA renovated the former Armstrong Recreation Center into a 25,000-square-foot interactive environment that resembles Savannah’s Forsyth Park. The center is the first of its kind to be developed on a university campus and the first to utilize college students such as Whitehead as instructors. The facility will serve 15,000 local middle school students annually and will employ about 45 Georgia Southern students as interns and instructors each semester. Discovery Center instructors are usually volunteers, but this center uses Georgia Southern students as interns, paid as Dulany Waters Leadership Scholars thanks to private support from local donors.

“Georgia Southern is proud to offer a space for the Junior Achievement Colonial Group Discovery Center where middle school students from our region and our own students can both learn from each other and gain valuable skills,” said Georgia Southern University President Kyle Marrero. “The center is an example of the transformative power of education that will impact these students for years to come.”

Disc Golf Course

When COVID-19 made indoor recreation impractical, Campus Recreation and Intramurals developed new outdoor activities for students. The new disc golf course consists of nine holes that can be played from multiple tee spots to provide an 18-hole course experience. The course is open every day and is free to students, staff and the general public. Disc golf is much like traditional golf, except players use flying discs instead of a ball and clubs. The discs are tossed into a target, usually an elevated basket. The hole is complete when the disc lands in the basket. The object of the game is to complete the course with the fewest number of throws. Students can check out discs for free at the Armstrong Recreation Center. The creation of the course also led to the creation of the Georgia Southern collegiate disc golf team.

The Armstrong Hall of Champions

The amazing contributions of student-athletes, coaches and administrators at Armstrong State University will never be forgotten. The new Armstrong Hall of Champions commemorates decades of Pirate achievements on the playing fields and in the classrooms.

The space serves as a permanent home for showcasing the Pirates who competed in NCAA Division II and the Peach Belt Conference before the 2018 consolidation of Armstrong and Georgia Southern. The Hall of Champions houses the Armstrong Athletics Hall of Fame, championship trophies from the NCAA, the Peach Belt Conference and displays a complete listing of All-America honors earned by student-athletes. It also includes photos, team rosters and a championship banner display, framed by the original basketball playing surface of the Armstrong gym, built in 1967 when the campus moved to its southside location in Savannah.

“We benefit as an institution from the history and the people of Armstrong State University,” University President Kyle Marrero said at the February ribbon-cutting. “And we will always celebrate that and remind ourselves of that incredible legacy. We are embracing the history and culture and distinctiveness of this campus and want to honor and build upon the foundation of Armstrong. We recognize this campus has a proud history and a rich, rich legacy.”

The Hall of Champions is located inside what is now the Armstrong Recreation Center, a building that used to be the home of Armstrong’s men’s and women’s basketball teams. Alumni and Hall-of-Fame members were invited back for the ribbon-cutting.

The Statesboro Campus

The Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center

Georgia Southern’s master plan includes expansion to an area called South Campus, which is located along Lanier Drive to the southeast crossing Veterans Memorial Parkway. This location will be the home of the Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center. The Center will be the future home of Georgia Southern basketball, and will house some indoor graduations.

“This will be a tremendous addition to our Statesboro Campus, for our local community and for our students,” said Georgia Southern President Kyle Marrero. “We are grateful to the governor and the legislature for supporting this project, which will be a permanent reminder of the generational impact made by Jack and Ruth Ann Hill.”

The center will be a multi-story complex that fills two vital University needs:

1. Approximately 7,000 square feet of additional instructional space for the Waters College of Health Professions, specifically for the sports and exercise psychology and sports management programs.
2. A multipurpose arena that can be utilized for large-scale events such as commencement ceremonies, speakers, concerts, job fairs and other University and community assemblies. The arena will be the new home court for Georgia Southern Eagles NCAA basketball games.

The academic space expansion is needed to keep up with enrollment in the Waters College of Health Professions, which has gone from 5,085 in 2018 to 5656 in 2021 and to support Georgia Southern’s commitment to expand its nursing cohort by 30% over the next five years.

For convocations, graduation ceremonies and other events that use the floor, the center occupancy tops out at almost 5,900. For athletic events and basketball games, the center will seat approximately 5,500 spectators.

The center also will include full office suites and locker rooms for Georgia Southern’s men’s and women’s basketball teams.

“The Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center is a true game-changer for Georgia Southern University, the Statesboro community and Southeast Georgia,” said Director of Athletics Jared Benko. “Our men’s and women’s basketball teams will transition to the facility full-time upon its opening. With new locker rooms, team spaces, training rooms, a strength and conditioning area and fueling stations coming on board, it will create a best-in-class student-athlete experience. We are also excited to partner with the faculty and staff in the Waters College of Health Professionals on new projects and initiatives.”

When completed, the 95,000-square-foot facility will be the largest event venue space between Savannah and Macon. Total construction cost is estimated at just more than $50 million, while the total project budget is set at $64.46 million. Funding for the project comes from a combination of state and privately raised funds. Some site work has already begun but construction will not begin in earnest until this fall with a construction completion target of late 2024.

The Anthony P. Tippins Indoor Practice Facility

On April 23, Georgia Southern broke ground on the new Anthony P. Tippins Indoor Practice Facility. The new facility will include a 91,300-square-foot practice area, fully-covered 120-yard regulation football field and an approximately 30-yard practice area for supplemental drills. An advanced netting system will further enhance training opportunities for student-athletes, particularly football, baseball, softball, men’s soccer, women’s soccer and women’s track and field. For more information, see the full story on page 56.

University Villas to Come Down for More Parking

If you lived in University Villas, your future visits to Statesboro could be jarring. University Villas will be no more. Demolition of the unoccupied student housing complex began shortly after spring commencement. The complex has been vacant since 2020. The space will be transformed into a needed parking facility containing 800 to 1,000 spaces. The lot will be used for student parking and may also provide additional parking for athletic events. The project is expected to be completed in early fall 2022.