Next year, Binghamton University students may see the beginnings of a new lecture hall and classroom building — thanks to a $60 million grant.

The new lecture hall will be built across from Academic A and its neighboring M Lot on campus, with construction planned to begin in mid-2024. The building will contain a 300-seat lecture hall, a 180-seat lecture hall, a 100-seat active learning classroom, two learning studios and 23 general classrooms that will vary from 20 to 75 seats. Three computer classrooms and an Information Commons will also be a part of the new building. The new lecture hall is not meant to replace the current lecture hall, but rather to add more classroom spaces on campus for student use, according to BingUNews.

BU was granted funding from the State University of New York Construction Fund (SUCF) for the construction and design of the new building.

Donald Hall, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, and JoAnn Navarro, vice president for operations, explained the purpose of constructing the new lecture hall.

“The new lecture hall is meant to expand the number of classrooms on campus, especially adding larger sized lecture rooms that can accommodate medium to large sections,” Hall and Navarro wrote in an email. “We currently are stretched thin in terms of the classes that can be scheduled at any one time, especially those enrolled above 200. We plan on holding several information gathering sessions to allow faculty and campus to provide additional input on what features they would like to see in the classrooms and the building in general.”

Enrollment at BU has increased by 20 percent in the past decade, according to BingUNews. With the need to also update technology in campus learning spaces, construction of a secondary lecture hall will provide space for BU to meet the demand of a growing student population and technological advances.

Hall and Navarro believe the new lecture hall and classroom building will benefit future students enrolled at BU.

“The building will provide the next generation of cutting-edge, high-impact learning spaces for the University, all with state-of-the-art technology,” Hall and Navarro wrote.

Alice Gurevich, a junior majoring in psychology, holds mixed opinions on the construction of the new building, expressing concern over its potentially large size.

“I think there are so many students here, it will definitely accommodate a new population of students,” Gurevich said. “But it’s also so large it takes up a huge portion of campus, that I feel like to a point it’s unnecessary. There could be a smaller building built instead of a new lecture hall.”

Hall and Navarro said that after construction begins in 2024, the building should be ready for use in the fall of 2026.

Delia Willis, a freshman majoring in mathematics, shared his support of a new lecture hall and classroom building on campus.

“I think just having other opportunities to learn different places is nice,” Willis said. “It is a good change of scenery on campus, and I definitely enjoy exploring the different types of learning environments on campus.”