MILWAUKEE — Marquette University has a brand new business school building at 16th and Wisconsin, the old home of McCormick Hall.
This new building marks a historic moment for Marquette as it is the university’s largest fully donor-funded construction project.
Building Dr. EJ and Margaret O’Brien Hall is a $60 million facility, and every dollar comes from donors.
Tuesday was the first day of classes for Marquette students in the new business school.
TMJ4’s Charles Benson was there to get his first look inside.
If you want to educate the business leaders of tomorrow, why not engage them in a new facility that represents the future?
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“It’s really adaptable to the kind of learning environment you want to have, the kind of social interactions you want to have, and it’s just so open,” said Marquette student Catherine Taphorn.
Taphorn and student Charlieu Hua talk business about their new space, including the Baird Applied Investment Management Lab with real-time stocks and business news.
“Very similar to a real trading floor in Chicago or New York,” Hua said.
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Not only do they feel like they’re in the stock market, students actually get to manage about $3 million of the university’s money, making big decisions about buying and selling stocks.
“We have these weekly presentations, so we’re always buying and selling stocks every week,” Hua said. “So we’re adding to the portfolio.”
Tim Hanley, Acting Dean of the College of Business Administration is just as excited as the students.
In a competitive environment for student recruitment, Hanley is already seeing results.
Benson asked, “How does this building intersect with those goals?”
Hanley responded, “This past year we saw a 40% increase in our freshmen.”
Hanley says they use 360 camera technology in classrooms.
“We know we’re going to have to design offerings that can be delivered in person and delivered remotely,” he said.
And providing results to students on their first day in class.
“Even in the two lectures I had today, I saw so many small business rooms that you can reserve for collaborative meetings with people on group projects,” Taphorn said.
An early return on a large investment in the community.
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