UW Oshkosh Reinvented

During the last decade, the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh’s campus began a process of transformation. Sage Hall isn’t the only new addition to the changing UW Oshkosh landscape.

The renovation of Reeve Memorial Union in 2001, the construction of the Student Recreation and Wellness and Student Success Center, the purchase of Lincoln Elementary School and the construction of Horizon Village residence hall are evidence of UW Oshkosh’s campus growth and expansion.

Radio-TV-film major Nathan Stepanek, of Oshkosh, works in admissions and frequently gives tours to potential students.  He thinks new buildings definitely draw students to campus.

“People like to feel like they are in a more modern setting,” Stepanek said.

The Sage Hall construction project also shows a continued investment in UW Oshkosh’s sustainability initiatives. With more solar thermal panels than any other state institution and a first-of-its-kind-in-the-nation, commercial-scale dry fermentation anaerobic biodigester to assist in providing heat and electricity for campus sources, UW Oshkosh has “done more than just say we’re sustainable,” said John Koker, dean of the College of Letters and Science at UW Oshkosh.

Sage Hall was designed for gold LEED rating from the U.S. Green Building Council and features a live green roof, sustainable landscaping and rain gardens. Features such as light shelves, which are wooden shelves placed at the top of windows to reflect natural sunlight, in each office and a center courtyard to encourage the use of natural light in every office space, were implemented.

“Not only do we want to be efficient, but we also want to be an institution for higher education that can be a living, learning laboratory,” Koker said.

Tags: College of Letters and Science Reeve Memorial Union Sage Hall Student Recreation and Wellness Center Student Success Center U.S. Green Building Council