With snow flurries as the backdrop, Marquette University on Tuesday, March 6, broke ground for its new 46,000-square-foot Athletic and Human Performance Research Center. More than 200 members of the Marquette community, university trustees and research partners attended the ceremonial dig at the project site near the southwest corner of North 12th Street and West Wells Street.
Board Chairman Owen Sullivan emceed the event, which featured remarks by President Michael R. Lovell; Dr. Jeanne Hossenlopp, vice president for research and innovation; Bill Scholl, vice president and director of athletics; and Grace Gabriel, women’s lacrosse player. Rev. Nicky Santos, S.J., provided a blessing.
Owen Sullivan introduces President Lovell
“To describe the AHPRC in a single word, I believe it would be ‘dynamic,’” President Lovell said. “The AHPRC is a dynamic project that will stimulate change and progress at Marquette University. There have been a lot of changes to the project since it was first announced…but our goals for what will happen inside the building haven’t changed.”
The $24 million AHPRC will be built in phases under a long-term master plan. The first phase will include:
- Space for faculty researchers who work in a wide variety of academic fields.
- Locker rooms and support space for the lacrosse programs and golf team. (Since their inception as NCAA programs six years ago, the men’s and women’s lacrosse teams and their 90-plus student athletes have not had locker rooms.)
- Additional strength and conditioning spaces for the athletic department and a centralized core of laboratories for conducting human performance research.
Initial construction is expected to begin next week.
Follow Marquette Today for updates on the AHPRC as they develop.
