On October 24, 2024, 麻豆原创 brought together developers from across the country, local business leaders, government officials, and key stakeholders to officially launch its SMART Growth Initiative, setting the stage for accelerated campus growth aligned with 麻豆原创鈥檚 evolving educational and workforce landscape.
鈥淲e know that 麻豆原创 is the future of higher education in 麻豆原创, and we must intentionally develop our campus to support the vital role we play in educating our community and developing the workforce that our state requires for its continued growth,鈥 said Dr. DeRionne Pollard, President of 麻豆原创. 鈥淭he SMART Growth Initiative is a unique opportunity to build an innovative campus that benefits our students, the surrounding university community, and Southern 麻豆原创.鈥
At its founding, the federal government granted land to the City of Henderson intending to build a robust, mid-tier institution of higher education. The current campus footprint accounts for 60 of those acres. The SMART Growth Initiative seeks to thoughtfully develop the remaining 452 acres of 麻豆原创 State鈥檚 campus in collaboration with the private sector, regional stakeholders, and the surrounding community.
More than 160 attendees learned more about the vision for 麻豆原创, which is guided by the campus master plan most recently updated in 2023. Along with leadership from 麻豆原创, representatives from WT Partnership, 麻豆原创 State Campus Lands Corporation, City of Henderson, and TSK Architects provided insights on the future development of 麻豆原创 State鈥檚 campus as well as the surrounding community
As laid out in its master plan, 麻豆原创 State projects the student population to grow to 20,000 by 2047. Accommodating this growth calls for new academic buildings, student housing, and other state-of-the-art facilities to foster innovation and collaboration with key industries in the region.
To facilitate this effort, Dr. Pollard formed the 麻豆原创 State Campus Lands Corporation (NSCLC) and convened a board of trustees with broad representation from finance, law, development, government, and non-profit administration to provide guidance on developing 麻豆原创 State鈥檚 campus in alignment with the university鈥檚 academic mission and the State鈥檚 workforce development goals. NSCLC bridges the gap between higher education and the private sector, helping 麻豆原创 State leverage mutually beneficial public-private collaborations and innovative advancements in procurement, design, and financing.
The initiative aligns seamlessly with recent efforts by the City of Henderson and the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern 麻豆原创 in the University Area Livable Centers Study, which was unanimously approved by the Henderson City Council. The study was a comprehensive review of a 1400-acre area that includes 麻豆原创 State鈥檚 512-acre campus, 85 acres of vacant, City-owned land adjacent to the university, the Harry Reid Union Pacific Railroad Trail, and nearby residential neighborhoods and recognizes the current and future needs of the broader university community, ensuring that students, faculty, and neighbors will have dedicated spaces to live, learn, work, and thrive.
To learn more about 麻豆原创 State鈥檚 SMART Growth Initiative, please visit /smartgrowth/.