College Campuses Getting Makeovers to Add Space, Programs, Enhance Safety

Higher education is getting a makeover. Across the state, millions of dollars are being invested into infrastructure and campus improvements designed to make South Carolina's universities and colleges larger, safer, and more accessible.

At South Carolina State University (SCSU) in Orangeburg, a new $54.7 million, 90,000-square-foot complex to replace Turner Hall is expected to open in the fourth quarter of 2027. The project recently marked a milestone in the structural framework with officials and one of the builders, Summit Steel, placing a ceremonial steel beam on the academic building.

Funded by the South Carolina General Assembly, the new building will be the home of classrooms and student collaboration. Since the facility will house most of the general education courses, virtually every SCSU student will use the building at one time. It will also contain the College of Education, Humanities, and Social Sciences as well as a cafe and a mock courtroom.

The construction's general contractor is Harper Construction. The building was designed by Evoke Studio Architecture.

It is only one of several projects on the growing main SCSU campus. More than $210 million in construction is underway or is being developed through state and federal funding. Additional work includes construction of a new residence hall that will house 532 students, the renovation of Sojourner Truth Hall (a 384-bed dorm), a new dining hall for the Kirkland W. Green Student Center, and a new commons building.

The three large ongoing projects means the campus has been busy this summer, with between 150 and 180 workers in place on any given day, according to Ken Davis, the university’s associate vice president for facilities management. This fall that will increase to between 400 to 500 builders, Davis says, as work on the academic building and student center will kick up by mid-October.

Designs are being drawn for a new library at the university as well. The facility will replace the existing Miller F. Whittaker Library and will include the honors college. Another project in the works is the University Transportation Center, currently under design.

At Clemson University, a new 90,000-square-foot facility to replace Redfern Health Center in conjunction with the Medical University of South Carolina is scheduled to be completed by fall of 2027. The university recently completed building the Advanced Materials Innovation Complex (AMIC): This major state-of-the-art R-1 research and laboratory building on campus opened in March of this year, under budget ($130 million) and ahead of schedule. Housing the Materials Science and Engineering, Chemistry, Chemical, and Biomolecular Engineering departments, the space also hosts five undergraduate teaching labs.

The campus is also hosting expansions and improvements including more on-campus housing along Highway 93 (fall 2027 completion), a six-story parking garage (also fall 2027) and a new 77,000-square-foot Forestry and Environmental Conservation Building (expected completion summer 2026) to replace Lehotsky Hall. Upgrades include a renovation of academic/administrative Edwards Halls' HVAC/electrical and fire safety systems (fall 2027).

Other Clemson projects include a new College of Veterinary Medicine, named the Harvey S. Peeler Jr. College of Veterinary Medicine in nearby Pendleton, South Carolina. The first vet school in the state, the $285 million complex will encompass 245,000 square feet and is scheduled to be completed this fall. Six buildings will include teaching facilities, clinical labs, a research building, an ambulatory service building, and equine teaching and farm animal spaces.

At the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) in Charleston, construction has begun on the new $175 million College of Medicine building. Scheduled to open in 2027, the 186,000-square-foot facility will include active learning spaces and classrooms, study and relaxation spaces for medical students, the College of Medicine's dean's office and even event spaces, cafe, and outdoor courtyard.

Managed by Sumter's Thompson Turner Construction, the building will have four floors of academic space, leaving floors 5 and 6 as "shell space" designed for potential future expansion, according to the builder. Specially designed spaces for physical and occupational therapy as well as a "human abilities lab" on floor 3 will simulate real-world living environments, and a 6,000-square-foot auditorium for the medical school's lectures and events.

Being in Charleston with dangers of flooding, the building has been designed with the lowest occupied floor three feet above any predictable water levels, and Thompson Turner notes critical mechanical and electrical machinery will be kept in the rooftop penthouse. Hurricane shielding and debris-resistance systems as well as pedestrian walkways linking the new structure to existing were more features the builder is incorporating into the project.

At Coastal Carolina University (CCU), the Conway Medical Center College of Health and Human Performance is on track to be finished by January 2029. The facility will contain public health, health administration, nursing, recreation, sports management, exercise, and sport science departments. It will also boast a health clinic as well as a parking garage for 400 vehicles.

Paid for by a $10 million donation from Conway Medical Center and a one-cent Horry County tax, the project's budget was increased to $75 million when the CCU Board of Trustees agreed in December 2025 to add 21,000 square feet to the building for a total of 85,000 square feet. The decision added $21.9 million to the price tag, raising the total cost to near $75 million.

Coastal Carolina will spend $13 million to relocate their track and field facility to make space on Chanticleer Drive West for the new medical center college, and will construct new fields, track, and field house at the Atlantic Center near the current tennis, soccer, and beach volleyball hubs. Other projects on the campus include an overpass over Highway 544, University Boulevard improvements, and facility improvements.

A major renovation of the Stern Student Center on George Street at the College of Charleston (COC) is expected to be completed by this November. Virtually everything is being replaced in the building including mechanical systems, with electrical systems being brought to code. The project will also relocate the student gym and improve food service for students.

Other upgrades at COC include upgrading the Sottile Theatre (December 2026 projected completion) and the Grice Marnie Lab on Fort Johnson Road, which is getting improvements which include new ADA-compliant restrooms, structural upgrades, and central HVAC.

Classes and construction: protecting students a priority

Managing large machinery, crews, and construction brings its own set of challenges on a campus of over 3,000 students. Additionally, Davis notes, the presence of the Felton Laboratory Charter School (K-8) "just steps away from a $50 million residence hall project" on SCSU's campus has called for safety regulations to be very intentional, he notes. "We are using contractors with great safety records to start with, making sure those safety measures are implemented and monitored on a daily basis. Kids have a lot of curiosity – we even installed an extra fence to keep them safe." Starting the projects over the summer when college students were gone was also a thought-out schedule, he adds.

"It has to be intentional at each general contractor's level to where they’re making sure their site is not only safe behind their fence but around their perimeter. It's a large team effort," says Davis.

At Clemson, safety is uppermost in the design of the new Williamson Parking Garage, which will boast a pedestrian walkway to ensure students, faculty, and visitors can cross the roadway without incident. While construction of the deck and other projects are underway, contractors like Juneau have implemented safety measures in the past that include closing crosswalks located near construction exits, installing mirrors to increase students' visibility of traffic, and meeting with university officials to communicate progress and building events.

Clemson also tries to schedule work on crosswalks, roadways, and campus buildings over winter breaks when students are gone.

Located in a city known for tourism and history poses unique challenges for safety at the College of Charleston. Leadership implements major upgrades during the summer when fewer students are on campus. Working closely with the Office of Environmental Health and Safety and Fire and Life Safety the college's Facilities Management department keeps an updated website that students can check to see where projects are active.

At CCU the department of Design and Engineering imparts physical boundaries and access limits with observation and monitoring of sites. The office also works closely with the Environmental Health and Safety Department to make sure contractors and private workers are complying with all safety rules.

Technology and sustainability on campus

Being up-to-date with technology and sustainability is a critical part of building on campus. Since 2007 all buildings constructed using state dollars have to be minimum of LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified. Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council this green building system focuses on reducing carbon emissions and utility consumption and encourages responsible sourcing of building materials and sustainable site development. It also contains regulations for enhancing indoor air and environmental conditions.

Under South Carolina's Energy Independence and Sustainable Construction Act, major state-funded projects must meet the LEED Silver standard or "Two Green Globes," under the Green Building Initiative rating system. At SCSU, "It includes energy savings, having places for electric vehicles to charge, carpooling lanes, reserving water, all those things," Davis explains. "It runs the gamut when it comes to energy and sustainability." Every project currently being built "will be a minimum of two green globes," he adds. "And we may reach three on some."

Smart buildings are also employing the latest technology, offering up-to-date detection systems for weapons, smoke, vaping, and more, notes Davis. "We have the latest when it comes to security cameras and egress for securing an office, a dorm room or a building itself."

Keeping the historic look of campuses in the state is another part of the equation. Selecting architects who keep integrating "old bricks" in the design aspect is crucial. "We try to be very intentional," says Davis. "While these building will have a certain modern look to them, we've also implemented some of the core ingredients of the oldest part of the campus in that. Whether that's with color, a certain signature look or whatever, it has to be one cohesive campus at the end of it all. It ties together with the common thread that dates all the way back to Lowman Hall that was constructed in 1917. The brick matches, it is the same common thread that is on all of our buildings and some of the color."

Deciding when to renovate versus replace buildings on campus is another part of maintaining campuses, and Davis says the state has a protocol in place for this decision. "We access our buildings annually and report our deferred maintenance out to the state. We track those things from an initial building cost to replacement cost to insurance value – to how much deferred maintenance is in this building and is it worth renovating?"

After assessments some buildings are demolished. An exception in SCSU's case is historic Truth Hall, he notes. "At 14 stories above ground, it's the tallest building between Columbia and Orlando – an iconic building for this area." After a structural assessment showed both the bones and foundation were good, he says, "We decided it was worth putting the money in to do the renovation." The resulting job ($25 million) has saved taxpayers half the cost of a new building ($500 million).