GRANVILLE, Ohio (WCMH) — Denison University will break ground on an innovative center dedicated to combining liberal arts and data sciences next semester.
The new center will renovate the Doane Administration Building, adding 17,700 square feet to it. Completed in 1894, the Doane Building is 21,250 square feet and now on track to house the first center devoted to integrating liberal arts and data at a liberal arts college.
The project is estimated to cost at least $35 million, according to Denison’s minimum fundraising goal. The center will house the computer science and data analytics departments, as well as classes in applied mathematics, digital humanities, financial economics and political research data, according to Denison’s announcement.
The center was planned with architectural firm The Collaborative, and according to Dension representatives it will be home to collaborative spaces, labs and classrooms. The Collaborative also helped design Denison’s Ann and Thomas Hoaglin Wellness Center, which opened in August 2022.
Courtesy photo / Denison University press release, in tandem with The Collective 
Courtesy photo / Denison University press release, in tandem with The Collective 
Courtesy photo / Denison University press release, in tandem with The Collective 
Courtesy photo / Denison University press release, in tandem with The Collective
According to Denison’s plans for the center, the renovations also include new robotics and virtual reality labs. An executive conference space on the upper floor will host presentations and special events in front of panoramic campus views, with large windows featured heavily in the project’s designs. Multipurpose classrooms will be specifically designed for teaching programming and coding, the first of their kind on campus.
Denison representatives said the building’s insides will look modern and innovative, but its exterior will maintain the historic charm and ornate details that characterize the Doane building. The exterior restoration portion of the project will include a new outdoor classroom space, as well as seating and brick pathways toward the east end of the academic quad.
Denison was one of the nation’s first liberal arts colleges to offer data analytics as a major, and campus administrators said the university wants to stay at the forefront of the field. According to an announcement from Sept. 25, data analytics is the university’s fastest-growing major.
Construction on the donor-funded building is expected to be completed in August 2026.
