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Our Goals
- Westlake Hall
- Engineering and Business
Convergence Center - Markin Family Student
Recreation Center - Athletic Performance Center
- Men's Basketball
Practice Facility - Alumni Center
- Academic Excellence
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the Campaign Gala - Hayden-Clark Alumni Center Groundbreaking
- Westlake Hall Groundbreaking
News & Updates
Campaign for a Bradley Renaissance launched
The Campaign for a Bradley Renaissance launched with $30 million gift from Caterpillar Inc. and 20 other donors pledge million dollar gifts.
With a vision of transforming its campus and curriculum, Bradley University launched a $150 million Campaign for a Bradley Renaissance at a gala event at the Peoria Civic Center ballroom. Highlighting the evening was the announcement by Caterpillar Inc. that it has committed $30 million to the effort, the largest gift in Bradley's history.
Caterpillar College of Engineering and Technology
Tracing Caterpillar's long-standing relationship with Bradley, Caterpillar Chairman and CEO Jim Owens announced the company has pledged two matching grants and an outright gift - for a total of $30 million. The matching grants are designed to attract additional contributions of $18 million, increasing the total potential support to $48 million.
"Today, more than 2,400 Bradley alumni are active members of Team Caterpillar. Another 750 are Caterpillar retirees, and hundreds of Bradley students work as interns at Caterpillar facilities. The university's talented faculty collaborate with us on research projects and continuing education opportunities that give Caterpillar a competitive edge," Owens said. "As a citizen of Central Illinois, Caterpillar sees Bradley as a resource for economic development and we count on Bradley to enhance the quality of life in our community."
Bradley President Joanne Glasser announced that the College of Engineering and Technology now will be named The Caterpillar College of Engineering and Technology.
"The naming of the College is an expression of our profound gratitude and our commitment to enhance educational opportunities for students to help prepare them to become leaders in the work place," Glasser said.
The Vision
During the program Bradley Board Chairman Gerald Shaheen, Chairman of the Campaign Committee, outlined the vision for the campus renaissance. The projects, subject to funding, include the following:
- The historic Westlake Hall with its beautiful limestone architecture will be preserved. The interior will be renovated and expanded to 60,000 square feet of academic space to meet the needs of the College of Education and Health Sciences. The alterations will provide students with hands-on learning experience that will benefit future teachers and health science and human service professionals. Westlake Hall also will house the new Institute for Principled Leadership in Public Service.
- A new engineering and business convergence center will be developed. It will provide high-tech classrooms and laboratories for multidisciplinary teams to design and produce real products, and real business plans. New faculty and endowed professorships will be created to attract and retain top educators and innovative researchers. The convergence will create a signature program in business and engineering.
- The Markin Family Student Recreation Center is under construction and will open in six months. It will include an indoor swimming pool, fitness facilities, a climbing wall, basketball courts, and a café. It will be home for the Wellness Program, Health Center, and Counseling Services, and provide much needed laboratory space for the Department of Nursing.
- A 4,200-seat athletic performance center will serve as the home court for women's athletics, and function as a concert hall and convocation center. It will include state-of-the-art locker rooms, strength training, cardiovascular and whirlpool facilities as well as hospitality suites, a lounge, and a Hall of Fame to honor Bradley athletic legends.
- The Puterbaugh Men's Basketball Practice Facility will include study areas, weight rooms, lounges, and offices.
- Bradley Hall would be expanded to the west to house an Alumni Center that overlooks a landscaped alumni quad. A large ballroom, an alumni hall of pride, a library, and conference rooms for alumni meetings and gatherings are envisioned for the facility.The new quad would include benches, walkways, and stretches of open green-space.
- Strengthening the endowment and increasing annual support will provide additional scholarships to attract a diverse, talented student body, recruit and retain outstanding faculty, develop programs that capitalize on existing strengths, and invest in technology that will enhance teaching and learning.
Renaissance Circle Society
Shaheen also announced that 20 gifts of a million dollars or more have been pledged to the Campaign.
The University has established the Renaissance Circle Society to pay tribute to individuals, corporations, and foundations exemplifying a rare commitment to Bradley University by making a campaign gift of $1,000,000 or more.