New residence hall offers improvements for more than Southern students

Darren+Fullerton+%28right%29%2C+vice+president+of+student+affairs%2C+gives+a+tour+of+one+of+the+new+apartment-style+residence+halls+after+the+ribbon+cutting+ceremony+Aug.+13+at+Missouri+Southern.

Brad Stout | The Chart

Darren Fullerton (right), vice president of student affairs, gives a tour of one of the new apartment-style residence halls after the ribbon cutting ceremony Aug. 13 at Missouri Southern.

Missouri Southern took another step toward the 100th anniversary goals of campus rejuvenation over the summer with the Aug. 13 ribbon cutting and official opening of the new $14 million residence complex.

Now full of students, the three-story complex made up of six buildings features accommodations for 201 students, housed in a total of 51 state-of-the-art apartments.

“We keep referring to this complex as residence halls; this is not a residence hall,” said Vice President of Student Affairs Darren Fullerton. “The residence halls are what many of us grew up with … this is anything but that … this is an apartment complex.”

The new complex raises the number of possible student to be housed on campus to 900, a dramatic increase and one that Southern and the Joplin community foresee as economically impactful.

“This is an incredible improvement to what this great University is offering students,” said Joplin Mayor Michael Seibert. “What a great addition it is to the community to have additional residence here … with the upgrades that Missouri Southern has had, I think the community of Joplin has had upgrades as well.”

With anniversary goals in mind, the University continues to seek improvement, but regardless of the situation the reasons remain the same.

“The most valuable resource at Missouri Southern is clearly our students,” said University President Dr. Alan Marble. “An improvement for them is an improvement for the University, and it is an improvement for the community, so believe me when I say that great things are in store for Missouri Southern.”