The Center of the Arts (CA) holds a lot of history from its creation in 1971, as the building has seen generations of art students perfect their craft. This year brings a new renovation to music students. The CA will get a much-needed upgrade in its practice, recital and rehearsal spaces. This has been a long-anticipated project for both students and faculty.
“This project will begin at the end of spring 2026 and will finish by the end of summer 2027,” music chair Christian Ellenwood said. “The practice rooms, faculty offices, room 30, room 1005 and the Light Recital Hall will all be renovated.”
This project was approved a year ago when Governor Tony Evers visited the Center of the Arts to see how bad the sound bleed was. When an ensemble played in one of the rooms being renovated, the decibel level was at 106, which is dangerously high.
“We have had faculty and former students report either a loss of hearing or a constant ringing in their ears due to the sound bleeding out of offices and rooms,” Ellenwood said.
The budget is over 14 million dollars, with renovations beginning this upcoming summer. The electrical system of the building will be fully updated, along with the replacement of the HVAC system. After that will be room 30 along with the practice pods. Both sections will have a full reconstruction with wooden floors, updated stylistics and better soundproofing quality.
The spring renovations will transition to the faculty offices. During this process all of the faculty will need to clear out their offices, which leads to the decision on where to store them.
To round out the renovation process, in the summer of 2027, the percussion studio along with room 1005 will be updated on design and soundproofing, making the space more enjoyable for all musicians using it. Light Recital Hall will be renovated with an update to the stage, an upgrade to the acoustical cloud that hangs above the stage and a screen including a projector to bring in a new experience.
“These upgrades are long overdue and necessary,” Dean of the Center of the Arts Michael Dugan said. “The current spaces were not designed for modern music instruction, and in some cases, actively work against it. This project corrects that and sets the program up for long-term success.”
Buzzing excitement has grown throughout the building as curiosity spreads among students who can only imagine what these new renovations will entail, along with how this will improve their experience within the building.
“When your practice rooms stop fighting you and start supporting you, everything improves. Whether that’s recruitment, retention, performance quality or overall student experience,” Dugan said.
With this new experience for musicianship, students can enjoy a higher level of music-making with the help of better acoustics. A main complaint was when students are practicing in the designated pods, another student of a different instrumentation could disturb that mental space and could make others feel insecure about their musicianship. Not only would better acoustics help the musician focus on their own sound, but it won’t turn into a competition of who can play the loudest or the highest note of their instrument.
Another concern is finding practice space once construction starts.
“I find the renovations to be interesting but concerning,” sophomore music education major Adriel Correa said. “I am concerned about finding availability in busy hours to practice during and after the renovation process.”
Although practice rooms will be undergoing renovations, the classrooms will not be touched and can still be accessed by music majors. As for faculty, they get to use the classrooms, but they will need to coordinate availability.
As for percussion, bass and piano studios, they will need to shift locations in order for lessons and ensembles to continue.
“I think the CA renovations will be a great upgrade for the entire program,” music education major Noah Brockway said. “Improving the practice and rehearsal spaces will help foster growth for both individual and ensemble success.”
It’s easy to see how excited the music program is for this huge renovation to a building that holds such a rich history of music exploration and development. But it hasn’t been an easy process, requiring a lot of time and coordination with many people.
“The next goal is to fully leverage the upgraded facilities to enhance recruitment, retention and student success while continuing to address broader facility needs,” Dugan said. “Long-term, this positions the college for continued accreditation success and future capital investments.”
