UNF Coggin College of Business interim dean Albert Loh, right, speaks at a groundbreaking Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2024. | Dan Scanlan, Jacksonville Today
Published on October 22, 2024 at 2:38 pm
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A $26 million expansion of the University of North Florida’s Coggin School of Business began Tuesday morning at the Southside campus.
The 21,660-square-foot addition, next to the existing school, will house new labs, classrooms and the Crowley Center for Transportation and Logistics.
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The expansion also includes renovation of a nearby campus building to add more classrooms and a graduate program. All are needed because Northeast Florida businesses are seeking graduates with business degrees, said UNF President Moez Limayem.
“We need to provide the talent needed for businesses to stay here and move here. And what do they ask for? They ask for talent,” Limayem told Jacksonville Today after a ceremonial groundbreaking. “This expansion will allow us to better serve our existing students but also attract more great students so that we answer the call for talent. This will add to our capacity, and, as we mentioned, this is way overdue.”
Interim Dean Albert Loh pointed to national rankings that he said rate UNF’s business school as one of the best. Loh said the addition has been in the planning for more than a decade.
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“The expansion will not only create state-of-the-art spaces for our learning but will also help our faculty to continue to produce world-class research that has an impact beyond the campus,” Loh said.
The College of Business was one of the inaugural UNF colleges when the university opened in 1972, with accreditation by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.
In 2002, the college was named for its benefactors, Luther and Blanche Coggin. With more than 3,000 students and 100 faculty members, it offers 10 undergraduate programs, plus seven master’s degrees, with new master’s programs in fintech and business analytics just started, Limayem said.
“UNF is the No. 1 talent provider for our region — 70% of our graduates stay right here in Jacksonville and Northeast Florida to make it better,” he said. “Eighty percent of our students stay in the state to make our state even better.”
The new addition will be built between the existing school and another campus building next to a large lake in the middle of campus. The new space has room for labs, classrooms, a student lounge, faculty offices and conference rooms. The second floor of the building next door will be renovated into new classrooms, offices and space for the Coggin Graduate and Executive Education program.
Along with the Crowley Center for Transportation and Logistics, the new building will house the new Energy Authority Portfolio Management Lab for finance and fintech students to study market trends and trading. A new Behavioral Research Lab will conduct business research in consumer behavior, behavioral finance, behavioral economics and management.
The expansion and the renovation means a total of 50,000 square feet of new space for the business school, set to open in the fall of 2026. The renovation and expansion are being paid for with $26.3 million in state funding.
