Farmingdale State College reopens Knapp Hall after a $9M renovation
After a more than $9 million renovation, Farmingdale State College reopened its historic Knapp Hall with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and tour for students and faculty on Tuesday. Credit: Newsday/John Paraskevas
Farmingdale State College's Knapp Hall officially reopened Tuesday with a more than $9 million new look and a new purpose as a home to multiple on-campus support programs for at-risk and underrepresented students to help them thrive academically and socially.
The former dining hall in one of the oldest buildings on campus, which dates to 1936, has had its first floor gutted and renovated in a $9.3 million project that now houses a student lounge, computer lab, quiet study space, tutoring rooms and offices for staffers of the many academic support and access programs serving more than 1,500 secondary school and Farmingdale State College students annually.
These programs, such as the Collegiate Science and Technology Education Program, or C-STEP, which provides support for underrepresented students, had been scattered in offices across campus. The new home is located in the center of campus.
"It really helps emphasize a sense of community and that's really one of the primary areas of our focus, which is to give students a sense of belonging that they have a home away from home," said Janice Rivera, executive director of the Department of Academic and Support Services at Farmingdale. "Bringing everyone under one roof has given us better opportunities to collaborate."
Farmingdale has seen record enrollment for the fall term, including growth in many of the programs served by the new space. For example, the college welcomed 215 students in its Advancing Completion through Engagement (ACE) program, a new initiative to ensure student academic success, retention and on-time graduation. The college also enrolled the largest-ever incoming class to its Equal Opportunity Program (EOP), a statewide assistance program offered through the State University of New York.
These two are among the services housed in the new space, as well as programs that connect the college with secondary students from underrepresented communities in some Long Island school districts.
Student Jayden Sampeur, 21, of Flushing, has been part of two programs, including C-STEP. These programs helped him land an internship at Brookhaven National Lab, said Sampeur, a senior who is a first-generation college student majoring in manufacturing engineering.
"I would have to go to one building for one and one building for another, but when they are all here I can go to one building and just have to traverse one hallway," he said, adding the new space likely will improve access for students and draw more into the support programs. "It's just a nice home for them [students] to come in and relax and gets the nerves out and talk to any staff member they need."
Joie Tyrrell is a Long Island native and covers education for Newsday, where she has worked since 1998.
