Wichita State is not only making its transition to a more innovative campus, but university leaders are also at the exploration phase of developing a new residence hall.

These new, apartment-style dorms would be different from those in Shocker Hall, in that they would be geared toward sophomore undergrads through graduate students.

The user fees collected from students renting the space would fund the project.

Lou Heldman, vice president of Strategic Communications, said freshmen have said they like the modern space Shocker Hall provides. But he asked the question, ‘what about after freshman year?’

Heldman said the university will be listening to students that live on campus to make the final decision for the location of the new dorms, although 17th Street and Oliver and 21st Streets have been tossed around as possibilities.

Heldman said due to a high number of students enrolled and demand for on-campus 
housing, the speed of the project may have to increase, but not without input from WSU students.

Students will now have a say on the way they live, dine and shop on campus, Heldman said.

President John Bardo sent an email to all WSU staff, faculty and students on Tuesday that contains a survey about the new Innovation Campus. The survey should take no more than 15 minutes to complete and will guide the university’s decisions on businesses they will bring to campus.

“The development of innovation on campus has been happening at universities all over the country,” Heldman said.

The Innovation Campus will be located on the old Braeburn Golf Course, and restaurants and shops will be included in the space, as well.

The goal of the new, innovative space is to “foster a culture of innovation, one geared toward business creation and reviving Wichita’s entrepreneurship ecosystem,” according to Bardo’s facilities master plan.

The WSU community can plan to see construction of WSU’s Innovation Campus in early 2015, and although not set, new dorms around the 2016-17 school year.