Woolsey Hall will be the new home to the W. Frank Barton School of Business, which was previously in Clinton Hall. Clinton Hall will be converted into the university’s student success center. The center will be a privately funded project.

“We are embarking on an exciting journey with new academic and professional development programs for our students and Woolsey Hall is the perfect environment to activate our plans,” Larisa Genin, dean of the business school, said.

The building’s construction began at the end of 2020. Construction for the building was estimated to be around $60 million. The building covers 125,000 square feet on Wichita State University’s Innovation Campus. 

“It is new, but it’s so on trend,” Dotty Harpool, Director of Marketing, Enrollment and Communication and Senior Marketing Educator, said. “The designing principles of this building are that it will be the academic home of students.”

A notable feature in the design of Woolsey Hall is its Promise Bridge. The bridge’s name was chosen to amplify the academic promises made by faculty to their students.

“The bridge is really a symbol of how businesses and research and academics are all working together on this campus,” Harpool said.

Harpool said that the building has something in it for every different type of student.

“There’s so many places that you could sit and see people or if you don’t want to see people, there are places for that,” Harpool said. 

The exterior work on the building is still underway due to the amount of summer rain which delayed work. Despite this construction outside, Woolsey Hall will be ready for the fall semester – open to students on Aug. 22.