(STILLWATER, OK, October 30, 2007) – Three 16 foot banners were dropped from the front of the Architecture Building today to signify the official start of the renovation and expansion of the building, now called the Donald W. Reynolds School of Architecture Building.
   
The majority of the $16 million project is being funded through a $14.8 million gift from the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation.  
  
 “We are so appreciative to the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation for its generosity,” said OSU/A&M Board of Regent Chair Lou Watkins. “The building has needed updating for some time.  The Reynolds Foundation gift allows the university to go beyond just an update.  The project will create a state of the art facility.”
   
“For many years OSU has produced some of the most renowned and sought after graduates from the School of Architecture,” said Interim OSU System CEO and President Marlene Strathe. “This new and improved facility will allow our School of Architecture to achieve even greater levels of success.  We cannot thank the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation enough for making this expansion a reality.”
   
The project will essentially build two wings on the existing building, dedicated in 1920 as the New Armory-Gymnasium, creating a total of more than 70,000 square feet for classrooms, studios, faculty office space and the Cunningham Architecture Library, in addition to a gallery which will open up to a partially enclosed courtyard.
    
 “The expansion and renovation of the architecture building will retain the warmth and charm of the open studio concept of the existing building, while creating new space that will accommodate technological innovations,” said OSU School of Architecture Professor and Head Randy Seitsinger.
   
“I’m so proud of this project because we have been able to preserve the past while still building toward a stronger future for our faculty, students and this great university,” Seitsinger added.  
   
The project is expected to be completed by the summer of 2009.  The architect on the project is Studio Architects of Oklahoma City and the construction manager is Oscar J. Boldt Construction of Tulsa and Oklahoma City.  

It is one of eight major academic and infrastructure projects totaling more than $162 million currently under way across the OSU-Stillwater campus.  All eight projects are part of the OSU Master Plan 2025.

Oklahoma’s only university with a statewide presence, Oklahoma State University is a five-campus, public land-grant educational system that improves the lives of people in Oklahoma, the nation, and the world through integrated, high-quality teaching, research and outreach.  OSU has nearly 33,000 students across its system and nearly 21,000 on its Stillwater campus. The STATE’s university boasts students from all 50 states and nearly 120 nations, and has more than 200,000 alumni throughout the world.