Plans in place for fall 2025 campus updates
By Caroline Haviland
Students returning to campus for the fall 2025 semester will be welcomed back by a plethora of upgrades intended to improve their overall experience at Rider.
Students can expect to see new places for recreational activities such as a patio outside of P.J. Ciambelli Hall to provide additional places for seating and outdoor basketball courts, courtesy of the Student Government Association
Mike Reca, vice president of university operations, will handle the renovations coming to the numerous parts of campus, including updates to campus roads and parking, dorm halls and extra recreational space.
The projects are brought before the presidential cabinet, residence life and facilities management, according to Reca. The multiple divisions choose what is of highest priority and what they can currently fund.
“We do what we can fund, that’s how it comes together. … Everything is subject to change. Anything can happen. Anything can change,” said Reca. “While they’re not set in stone, we’re running down this path right now.”
SGA has continued to work with Reca and his team to discuss recommendations to upgrade campus life, including where to allocate the funding from the recent parking permit fee.
“We met with SGA last week to take their recommendations on where we should invest the dollars, whether it’s roadways, parking or parking configuration. They’re taking it back to the student body and trying to come up with ideas,” said Reca.
Reca said Rider will pin down these decisions in March depending on how much money the university has for the projects. The operations will begin in July or August.
A budget has not yet been determined since the overall planning of spaces is not complete, according to Reca.
The current plans involve Centennial House being transformed into housing for students in the College of Arts and Sciences. Some of the upgrades include air conditioning, new flooring, upgraded bathrooms, new study spaces and a multi-use space for artistic endeavors.
The residence hall has been occupied by the Office of University Marketing and Communications since 2019, and was a sorority house in prior years. Staff members from the Westminster Choir College and Enrollment Management have also utilized the space.
“We like to say everyone has their own dorm room as offices. … It’s been a great space for us to build our teams,” said Kristine Brown, vice president of external affairs. “However, it was always built as a residence hall, and it was always meant to return as a residence hall.”
Other residence halls getting upgrades include Conover Hall, University House and Ziegler Hall with improvements consisting of new air conditioning units, flooring, lighting fixtures and painting jobs.
To further enhance the housing experience, a new room decorating contest will be taking place in fall 2025, according to Director of Residence Life Sean Killion. The objective is to create friendly competition amongst the communities in each residential building while also serving the marketing aspect for potential students to choose living at Rider.
“What I love about those types of programs is that we’re involving the students and their creativity in the process,” said Killion. “In my experience the students get really competitive and they want the bragging rights of who’s going to have the best decorated room on campus. I’m hoping we’ll be able to have some sort of prize to be associated with it.”
All plans are subject to change regarding any funding or spacing issues.
