Centers History - The University Centers

History of the University Centers

1950: The campus had its first student union in the basement of Delzell Hall, a men's residence hall. It consisted of a billiard table, a black and white TV set, and a kitchenette in a large open room. Games, an ironing board and an iron were donated by several student organizations.
1951: The institution had a name change to Wisconsin State College.
1955: Enrollment swelled to 1,188 and during the following year, the Board of Regents established a Student Union Fee. This fee was collected in anticipation of construction of a separate Student Union building.
1959:The first Student Union building opened, which is currently the east part of the present University Center. It contained about 35,000 square feet. The cost of the building was a little over a half a million dollars with about $35,000 worth of equipment in it.
1960: Campus enrollment exploded all over the nation. Wisconsin State College ended the decade with more than four times the number of students enrolled at the beginning of the decade. Lawmakers and educators saw the enrollment booms coming, and were able to enlarge facilities almost as needed even though three to five years was necessary for the planning and construction time of a building.
1964: The Allen Center was opened as a residential dining area and intended for students on the east side of Reserve St. A second dining area was being planned instead of an addition to Allen Center. Two dining centers, it was assumed, would mean less travel to meals for each student, and would allow a smaller group in a given building to get to know each other better than would be in the case in a single, large food facility.
1964: Another institutional name change occurred, changing Wisconsin State College to Wisconsin State University.
1965: An addition was put on the University Center at a cost in excess of a half million dollars. The addition doubled the 35,000 square feet to 70,000 square feet.
1967: DeBot Center opened in January and was intended as a residential dining area for students on the west side of Reserve Street. The cost of DeBot was about $1.5 million end equipment of $110,000.
1970: Since the previous decade enrollment increased from less than 2,000 to nearly 9,000 students. Students enrollment was somewhat established, and all the areas of the campus were afforded some time to sit back and see what had been established. Some programs that had to be established quickly to accommodate increasing enrollments during the 1960's could now be evaluated and improved.
1971: Wisconsin State University was changed to University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point as the two, sometimes competitive, higher education systems in Wisconsin were merged into a single system.
1972: Facility work continued to bring space and services to the needs of the 1970's level of population. In January, Allen Center was completed. Completion involved finishing the ground level area from a concrete shell.
1998: The addition of a conveniently located passenger elevator over the summer made the UC more user friendly and accessible.
2002: The Box office and the Multicultural Resource Center (which still reports to Multicultural affairs) area moved into the UC.
2003: The lower level of the University Center including Campus Activities, Student Involvement and Employment is renovated at a cost of $2 million. The campus employment and Intramural programs become part of the Centers.
2003: The Allen Center is fully converted to a Health and Wellness facility. Programs located in the Allen include: Outdoor EdVentures, the Cardio Center, a Message Center, Student Health and Promotions, and Group Fitness. Centers Facilities support is located in the Allen Center.
2004: The Lower Level of DeBot was remodeled and the Convenience Store received a major upgrade to provide more dining and seating options. Wireless access was added to the lower DeBot area.
2005: The Upper level of DeBot received a $2 million renovation in the summer. The three dining rooms and portions of the kitchen were reconstructed. Each room has a individual theme with finishes differing configurations, movable partitions, and activity centers.
2006: A $23.7 million renovation was approved for the University Center. Some of the new additions made to the building included a theater, an expanded Laird room, more lounge areas, and larger computer lab. A new entrance on the North West corner of the addition allows for a more inviting concourse entrance.
2008: The newly renamed and renovated Lee Sherman Dreyfus University Center reopened after 18 months of being closed for construction.
2010: During a summer renovation the DeBot Center becomes more sustainable with a new dish machine and pulper.
2011: University Recreation Sports (URS), formerly Recreation Advisory Council (RAC) student organization, becomes the newest department of the University Centers.
2012: DeBot moved to the University Dining Services (UDS) oversight since almost all functions in this center are residential dining related.
2014: A new Recreation/Fitness/Wellness building is approved by UWSP students via a referendum.
2015: Marshfield Clinic Health System Champions Hall (formerly the Health Enhancement Center, or HEC) begins reporting to the University Centers in order to create a collaborative Recreation/Fitness/Wellness unit for campus.

The University Centers

​Hi​​story of the University Centers​

History of the University Centers