Benet challenging science-loving students

With 1,300 students heading to lunch in the space of 90 minutes, hallway logjams were getting to be commonplace at Benet Academy in Lisle.

Not any longer. This fall's opening of the new St. Jude Science and Activity Center alleviates pedestrian traffic congestion and gives students more and better space to explore the mysteries of science, Principal Stephen Marth said.

"The old spaces were becoming very cramped quarters and they were outdated," Marth said. "They were built in the mid-'70s."

"The original science building was built 35 years ago," Benet President Father Jude Randall said. "At that time, it was state-of-the-art. It no longer is. "

He said the addition is the school's largest and most ambitious project to date.

"It's a lot safer, it's a great upgrade in the type of equipment that's in there," he said.

The new center, which adjoins two previously existing structures on the Catholic coed college preparatory high school campus, measures 50,000 square feet and includes four large biology classrooms, three chemistry classrooms, two chemistry labs, a kitchen, a serving area and a cafeteria.

The extra space will allow Benet to expand its offerings in anatomy and physiology classes. It also will allow the school to offer advanced placement chemistry courses, in addition to the advanced placement biology and physics courses already available.

The upgrades will better position students interested in pursuing science-based college coursework and careers, Marth said.

"It really is positioning students who have that interest to get the fundamentals - down pat before they go off to college," he said.

The school's former biology laboratories will be transformed into spaces for visual arts classes.

Marsh said the new center connects on one side to the three-story St. Martin Hall and on the other to St. Joseph Hall, which has four levels.

The center features a basement, two above-ground levels and an elevator that enables students to access all the floors of all three connected buildings.

"The connectivity is crucial in getting the school to feel more comfortable," Marth said. "The building has allowed us to accomplish so much."

The basement commons area of the St. Jude Science and Activity Center is a 10,000-square-foot space where study halls and after-school clubs meet and where advanced placement testing will take place, he said.

Marsh said planning for the center began in May 2006; construction began in June 2007.

"It was less expensive to build new than to renovate the old," he said.

The $16 million project was completed just before the start of this school year, ahead of schedule and under budget.

"We were pleased with both of those things," he said.

Fundraising was led by Randall, who Marth said raised $9 million in donations with a campaign titled "Building our Benet Heritage." The remainder of the cost was covered with the school's reserve funds, Marth said.

An official dedication ceremony, dinner and Mass were held Oct. 18 at the center.

By the numbers

A quick look at Benet Academy's St. Jude Science and Activity Center:

Cost: $16 million

Size: 50,000 square feet

Inside: Four large biology classrooms, three chemistry classrooms, two chemistry labs, a kitchen, serving area and cafeteria

Timeline: Planning began in May 2006, construction began in June 2007, opened this fall

Source: Benet Academy