AUBURN — A century and a decade after its founding, Auburn University’s College of Education began a new era this week, formally opening its 167,000-square-foot home with a grand opening ceremony and ribbon-cutting.
Welcoming a crowd of supporters seated inside the new three-story building, located at the corner of Samford Avenue and Duncan Drive, College of Education Dean Jeffrey T. Fairbrother shared his gratitude to the hundreds in attendance and his excitement for the future.
“I am thrilled to be with you today to celebrate this significant milestone in the history of our college and our university,” he said. “Today, we officially mark the grand opening of the College of Education’s new building — a vibrant hub of collaboration and innovation where we will be opening doors to opportunity for generations to come.”
Fairbrother thanked the many dignitaries in attendance and shared his gratitude to Auburn Board of Trustees member Wayne Smith, an esteemed alumnus of the College of Education, and his wife, Cheryl, for their lead gift that championed the project.
Fairbrother said the long-awaited new home comes at a significant time as the college recognizes its 110th anniversary this year.
“From our start in 1915 as a Department of Education that offered a degree in Agriculture Education to our days in the Haley Center and now having four academic units offering 60 degree options, our college has come a long way,” he said. “For 11 decades, Auburn’s College of Education has been a home to innovative thinkers and doers, focused on building a better future for all. And this state-of-the-art facility will help us live that mission as we embark on a new and bright chapter of improving lives here and beyond.”
The instructional and research facility includes modern and collaborative classrooms, instructional laboratories, research spaces, up-to-date technology and administrative spaces for faculty and staff.
Fairbrother said the new home further elevates the college by bringing its programming into a central location, ensuring that advising, multimedia technology, independent study and learning labs are within reach of every student.
The design is a key feature of the building
The common space connects the north and south sides of the building and opens vertically to a two-story atrium, featuring skylights and clerestory windows that welcome in natural light. The building offers a total of 2,093 light fixtures and 318 windows, and it also presents many doors of opportunity — 450 to be exact.
“This building also caters to the needs of our faculty, staff and alumni, with more beautiful and welcoming spaces to foster connection and collaboration,” Fairbrother said. “I’m particularly proud to draw your attention to the Scott Alan Lawrence Suite on this very floor. This suite is dedicated to a program that I see as emblematic of the Auburn Family and our values. The Education to Accomplish Growth in Life Experiences for Success (EAGLES) Program is our comprehensive transition program for students with intellectual disabilities.
“This new space will bring the EAGLES Program even closer to the heart of the university experience — making this building a shared place where EAGLES and other College of Education students can come together, connect and learn from each other like never before.”
Housed within the building are three of the college’s four academic units — Department of Curriculum and Teaching; Department of Special Education, Rehabilitation, and Counseling; and Department of Educational Foundations, Leadership, and Technology. The college’s School of Kinesiology remains in its building on Wire Road.
The ceremony also included remarks from Auburn University President Christopher B. Roberts and Auburn University Board of Trustees President Pro Tempore Jimmy Sanford. Roberts emphasized Auburn’s enduring commitment to excellence and student-centered learning, reflecting on the building’s significance in alignment with Auburn’s strategic vision.
“Ben Franklin once said that an investment in knowledge pays the best interest,” Roberts said. “We’re making that investment today in the College of Education. And we need to invest in education, maybe more than we ever have.”
Roberts thanked donors for their support as well as that of state leaders in attendance: Rep. Jeremy Gray and Sen. Jay Hovey. He also recognized Fairbrother and College of Education Dean Emerita Betty Lou Whitford for their leadership and vision, crediting their efforts in helping bring the new building to life.
“Today, we’re celebrating a big step forward for the College of Education,” he said, noting how the modern building will be home to a new generation of educators, counselors and administrators serving communities throughout Alabama and beyond. “With the collaborative classrooms and instructional labs and cutting-edge technology that I see all throughout the building, this facility strengthens our standing as one of the top education programs in the country.”
A testament to Auburn’s land-grant mission
“It is exciting to imagine the many generations to come who will find their inspiration, hone their craft and ultimately give back to their community as a result of the learning that will occur in this new building,” he said. “With this facility—which allows the bulk of the College of Education to reside solely in one building — we are setting a cohesive and firm foundation for the future, furthering our great university’s land grant mission and providing our students a heightened academic experience second to none.”
The celebration concluded with a ribbon cutting and with those in attendance touring the new building as college representatives welcomed them into various classroom and meeting spaces. In his remarks preceding the tours, Fairbrother called attention to the personal stories behind the building’s many named spaces.
“All of our donors have a story that reflects on how Auburn and the College of Education impacted their lives,” he said. “We are grateful for their support — support that honors our college’s mission and improves the lives of so many current and future students.”
While the event was the ceremonial opening of the college’s new building, some students have already been able to benefit from all it has to offer, with summer semester classes having started there in May.
Elementary Education major Laney Roe, who led tours of the building this summer as a member of the college’s Student Ambassadors Program, called the new building “a breath of fresh air and new possibilities.”
With the start of fall classes in the new building coming Tuesday, Roe said she can’t wait to see the college’s new home fully come to life.
“This is more than just an aesthetic upgrade,” she said. “It is a game-changer that will not just brighten our classrooms but also our thinking and capabilities.”
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