Phase I of Lee Complex Nearing Completion
On June 26, a shiny copper cupola was placed atop the tower of the new science and math complex at Lee University.
May 26, 2009–Cleveland, TN–Phase One of a $14 million science and math complex at Lee University is nearing completion. The project is part of the $25 million Press Toward the Mark capital campaign which has realized new scholarship funds, improved campus infrastructure and new buildings, including the new classroom complex.
On Friday June 26, several gathered to witness the placement of a copper cupola which tops the center commons area and becomes the tallest point on the 122-acre Lee University campus.
Late last month another dramatic moment took place as the former science building was bulldozed to make way for Phase Two of the complex. Crews have removed every piece of the former three-story Beach Science Building, which was built in 1966 and had become inadequate for the needs of the growing university science program. When it was built, the former science building accommodated under 1,000 students. Today, Lee University’s enrollment exceeds 4,100 and the academic offerings have expanded as well. On June 26, concrete footers and block walls were in place on the site of the former science building as contractors work toward an early 2010 full occupancy of the complex. Phase One is scheduled to be ready for the fall 2009 semester at Lee, which begins in August. Furnishings and carpeting were being delivered and installed by mid-June.
Lee University is the flagship educational institution in the Church of God. Begun in 1918 as Bible Training School, the first class had 12 students and met on the second level of the old Church of God Publishing House in Cleveland, Tenn. In 1938 the school moved to Sevierville, Tenn., where the growing school took over the campus of the former Murphy Collegiate Institute. Nine years later in 1947, the Bob Jones College campus became available back in Cleveland, so the school relocated to the 20+ acre campus just four blocks from the site of the school’s origin. It was at this time that the school was re-named Lee College for its second president and former general overseer of the Church of God, F.J. Lee. Today, Lee University is led by Dr. Paul Conn who has been president since 1986. Under his leadership the university has become a leader in Christian higher education. Student enrollment has quadrupled in size, over 100 acres has been added to the campus, and more than 20 new buildings have been constructed.
With the tower of the new complex in the background, the former science building at Lee is razed on May 26.
