SELLERSBURG – Ivy Tech Community College Southern Indiana dedicated Ogle Hall today, the last remaining step concluding a long-anticipated capital project. The dedication was well-attended with some 150 community members in attendance.

“This is not only a great day for the local campus of Ivy Tech here in Sellersburg, but a great day for the entire Ivy Tech system,” said Thomas Snyder, President of Ivy Tech Community College. “Ogle Hall helps us meet our firm commitment to provide quality education to the residents of Indiana and assists us in reaching out further into the community to help secure our ties to the entire Louisville region.”

The college’s new building was named for the late Paul Ogle, a prominent philanthropist who supported education extensively during his lifetime. The Paul Ogle Foundation gave the Ivy Tech Foundation $1 million towards improvements to the planned building. That gift led the way in the campus’ capital campaign, which raised $4 million from individuals, businesses, foundations and non-profit organizations. Paired with a $16 million appropriation from the Indiana General Assembly, the total cost of Ogle Hall and renovations to the campus’ existing building came to $20 million.

The new building helps accommodate a growing student body. Enrollment has climbed at a double-digit percentage rate for the past 10 years on campus. In the Spring of 2011, enrollment was above 5,000 for the first time.

“Since I arrived on this campus nearly 10 years ago, creating new spaces for our students and faculty has been a top priority,” said Dr. Rita Hudson Shourds, Chancellor of Ivy Tech Southern Indiana. “I am eternally grateful to the General Assembly and to our donors for seeing the needs of our campus and rising up to help us meet the challenge of providing a quality education. Our staff here on our campus and in Indianapolis has been diligent and tireless in their support. This capital project is a re-envisioning of our entire campus, a transformation that addresses the critical need for additional classrooms and labs with the desire to create a true college campus experience for our students.”

Shourds announced at the dedication the creation of the James W. & Phyllis A. Robinson Nursing Pavilion. The Robinsons’ gift allows Ivy Tech to create a space dedicated to nursing in the western wing of Ogle Hall.

“This gift allows us to better replicate key clinical settings, including medical, surgical, intensive care, emergency room, obstetrics and neonatal,” Shourds said. “We’re extremely gratified to receive this gift and have the ability to create this special space for our nursing students.”

About Ogle Hall

Ogle Hall is a 78,500 square foot building with classroom and office space, as well as community rooms designed for use by community groups. The Horseshoe Foundation of Floyd County donated significant funding to create the Horseshoe Assembly Center, which is a 200-seat auditorium where the dedication took place today. Other gifts helped pay for significant technology upgrades and extra conference room space. Ivy Tech administrators are seeking LEED silver certification for the building, which is energy efficient, has recycling facilities throughout and is bathed throughout in natural sunlight.

Construction officially began with a new parking lot created in 2009. Other work to prepare the property for the new building followed. The project team included Ivy Tech Southern Indiana, MSKTD & Associates Inc. and GDH LLC. Site work for the project was completed by MAC Construction & Excavating Inc. and Gohman Asphalt and Construction Inc., and Nading Mechanical Inc.

Ivy Tech Community College is the state’s largest public post-secondary institution and the nation’s largest singly-accredited statewide community college system with more than 200,000 students enrolled annually.  Ivy Tech has campuses throughout Indiana.  It serves as the state’s engine of workforce development, offering affordable degree programs and training that are aligned with the needs of its community along with courses and programs that transfer to other colleges and universities in Indiana.  It is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and a member of the North Central Association.