The Arkansas State University Board of Trustees Thursday in a special meeting approved nearly $48 million in capital projects at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro, including a home for its new College of Veterinary Medicine.
The approvals occurred prior to a groundbreaking ceremony for the previously approved $28.2 million, 38,887-square-foot Windgate Hall of Art and Innovation, which will house spaces for the Department of Art + Design and the College of Engineering and Computer Science.
Design and construction of the College of Veterinary Medicine facility is estimated at $33.2 million. The university plans to fund the building through the issuance of taxable Student Fee Revenue Bonds totaling $30 million and institutional reserves of $3.2 million. Tuition and fees from veterinary students will ultimately fund debt service for the construction.
The move follows a recent consultative site visit by the American Veterinary Medical Association’s Council on Education, which reviewed A-State’s progress on facilities, policies and personnel for the college. The university plans to admit its first cohort of students in 2026 in what would become the state’s only public vet school.
The bond funding plan adopted by the board calls for a term not to exceed 30 years with an anticipated average interest rate of 5.5% and average annual debt service of just over $2 million. The ASU System will obtain the required advice of the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board regarding the economic feasibility of the project.
The board also authorized A-State to proceed with the purchase of $10 million of equipment to be used in the creation of the Center for Advanced Materials and Steel Manufacturing. The project will be funded through federal grant funds that were requested by U.S. Sen. John Boozman of Arkansas.
A-State will use the high-tech equipment for a multimillion-dollar facility that aims to advance the growing steel industry in the Arkansas Delta and throughout Northeast Arkansas.
The university anticipates close partnerships with steel manufacturers for research, process improvements, testing of advanced materials and steel manufacturing while training a growing professional workforce for the industry and region.
Trustees also approved a $4.76 million renovation of Northpark Plaza at A-State. The facility will be used to support initiatives to strengthen Home and Community Based Services for Medicaid beneficiaries as part of The HOWL (Helping Our Wolves Learn) RESTORE (Research, Education, Service, Transition and Outreach through Reflective Engagement) Hub on campus.
“It’s been a long process, but the steel project and vet school are very important to the state and will transform lives,” Trustee Paul Rowton said in a press release.
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