The new Ohio Union is a place to transform students into leaders, the staff says.
With regard to Ohio State’s nearly 1,000 student organizations, the union’s Center for Student Leadership and Service was designed to give students a space that is like no other union in the country.
Located on the second and third floors of the southwest corner of the building, the center is a place for students to develop leadership skills and build a community, said Tracy Stuck, assistant vice president of Student Life and director of the Ohio Union. Students will be able to get into the area 24 hours a day.
“When I walk in there, I just dream of students being all over and the discussion that will happen there,” Stuck said.
Matt Couch, associate director of the Ohio Union and director of orientation for Student Life, said the plan was to create a “bustling hangout” for students to use at all hours — a comfortable space with amenities that helps student organizations grow.
“In comparison to other unions, the amount of square footage we have devoted to this area is unreal,” Couch said. He added that it combines the best of what other student unions have.
The center includes a brick wall bearing the names of many of the students and staff involved in the planning of the Ohio Union.
“We’re calling it the ‘Brick Society,'” Stuck said, “and we’re going to get together every five years and talk about the good old days of building the Union.”
Couch said the layout, furnishings and programs in the center are meant to form a comfortable and inclusive environment. He describes it as feeling like a lodge, with wood paneling and a fireplace that includes a mantle carved from the wood of a tree that was on the lawn of the construction site.
One of the highlights of the area is the resource room, formerly called the SOURCE at the old union.
Jen Pelletier, assistant director of the Ohio Union, said this room that traditionally provides copies, banners, buttons, magnets, laminations and the like for student organizations is expanding for the use of all students. They can use the resources for class projects and assignments. It also includes a video production area and check-out service for laptop computers.
Pelletier said there are nine meeting rooms, which any student can reserve for things such as interviews or practicing a presentation. They all come with flat-panel TV screens.
The meeting rooms are themed so students can “sing Ohio’s praise,” Couch said. For example, the presidents room features the seven Ohioans who have served as U.S. Presidents. And the flag room will feature Ohio’s state flag — one that will fly over the Ohio Statehouse on the opening day of the new Union.
Each meeting room forms the center of a cluster of offices for student organizations. Stuck said there are about 80 of them total, which were assigned by the Ohio Union Council after students filled out applications for the spaces.
“We’ll monitor the usage of them,” Stuck said. “If you don’t use your space, that will go into the decision the following year.”
For those student organizations that were not fortunate enough to get office space but who would like some storage in the Union, Stuck said there are lockers for them. There are also carts that can be used to transport the groups’ belongings to the various meeting rooms.
“As impressive as the physical space we’re calling the ‘Center for Leadership and Service’ is, we hope students will be every bit as impressed with the programs that will come from it,” Couch said.
The staff plans to have workshops, classes and other programs dealing with leadership development and community service.
“I think that students interested in exploring these things are going to
be very excited about the possibilities,” Couch said.
When students enter the area, they will pass through a light shining on the floor, Stuck said. It will say “Leadership begins here.” They will see features of notable alumni who were involved in student organizations, such as actress Patricia Heaton, track star Jesse Owens and businessman and Board of Trustees member Les Wexner.
“If they need a little bit of extra luck that day, they can rub the head of a bronze bust of Beanie Drake, the first manager of the Ohio Union,” Couch said. “Beanie was a visionary supporter of students and a wellspring for so many of the organizations and traditions we still have today.”
Staff say they hope the center creates Ohio’s next civic leaders.
“If a student isn’t sure where to begin to get involved, the center will be a great first stop to get started,” Pelletier said.
