Augusta University completes Campus Master Plan

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Augusta University recently completed its Campus Master Plan, a roadmap for transformational change over the next decade that will strengthen the institution’s position as a destination of choice for education, health care, discovery, creativity and innovation.

The plan encompasses the Summerville, Health Sciences and Forest Hills campuses and identifies challenges and opportunities in existing physical settings that support the academic, research, clinical and student life domains.

“The Master Plan is critical in planning for our future,” said Augusta University President Brooks Keel. “We must make sure we have the right facilities to carry out our missions of teaching, education, service and research.”

The planning phase lasted more than a year and drew widespread institutional participation and oversight from a large cross-section of Augusta University and its affiliated health system. The process was largely data-driven as planners looked at quantity and utilization of space, facility conditions, housing, parking and transportation, and land.

The Campus Master Plan, while comprehensive in nature, is a fluid document intended to maintain flexibility in keeping with an ever-changing university.

Clinical projections are still being finalized and will be forthcoming based on program direction.

One of the driving factors planners focused on is anticipated student enrollment growth.

“When you talk about expanding the campus, it has to start with the students,” Keel said, “and with an increasing enrollment, you have to have all the amenities that students will need.”

With university enrollment expected to increase by as much as 20 percent over the next decade, each of Augusta University’s nine colleges is anticipating growth, which will necessitate more faculty and staff growth.

Student housing is projected to surge drastically, aided by the new undergraduate and graduate residence halls under construction on the Health Sciences Campus. This new residence housing was an early driver in the planning process; however, the Campus Master Plan envisions much more than building new facilities.

“A Campus Master Plan of this magnitude is not just about new construction,” Keel said. “It is about repurposing existing buildings and the renovation of existing space. That’s one of the exciting aspects of this plan is that it will allow us to do both.”

More detailed information and video will be released in the coming weeks on areas such as academics, student life and research.

Visit the Campus Master Plan website for more information.