SUNO receives approval to construct Information Technology center

The Louisiana Board of Regents voted in early December to approve construction of an Information Technology Center at Southern University, New Orleans (SUNO).

The IT Center will house the University's current Information Technology Center including mainframe, the E-Learning center and the Audio-Visual Department. The center will comprise approximately 10,000 gross square feet at a cost of about $3,000,000.

"The IT Center is key to the long-term viability of SUNO. It will be of great service not just to us, but the surrounding community as well by offering training and various programs. This new construction represents yet another sign about SUNO's important role in the rebuilding of the metro region," says SUNO Chancellor Victor Ukpolo.

The center will be constructed under Act 959 of 2003. Act 959 "provides that under certain conditions, self-generated projects funded without incurring debt and costing less than $5,000,000 may be performed and administered by an institution without it being included in capital outlay," according to the Louisiana Board of Regents.

The IT Center is the second new building construction announced for SUNO in recent months. Groundbreaking for SUNO's first-ever student housing facility will take place in June 2008, with the first phase slated for completion in the fall of 2009.