Dean’s Insider: Updating and renovating our spaces

I recently celebrated my one-year anniversary as dean of the College of Fine Arts, and as I look ahead, I couldn’t be more excited about what we’re building, both physically and programmatically.

As I walked through our buildings recently, signs of progress are everywhere. Over the summer, we’ve been refurbishing three heavily used Art History classrooms, installing new instrument storage lockers in the Butler School of Music and planning for the Buckman Center, a new immersive media lab set to open next fall.

In the past year, we completed major renovation projects of our photography lab facilities, and the Department of Design moved into a newly renovated Anna Hiss Gymnasium with 10,000 square feet of studio classrooms, meeting spaces and shared faculty offices. Texas Performing Arts also made significant enhancements to Bass Concert Hall while their stages were dark during the pandemic, and returning audiences last year enjoyed improved seating and sightlines.

We still have much to do regarding our facilities, but the excitement around these projects is palpable in our community. As an alumnus of the college, I have great love for the old bones of our buildings, and I’m so proud to see these new projects come to fruition to support our teaching and learning mission in the college.

Sincerely,