Chicago Construction News staff writer
Knox College has launched a $10 million renovation of its Umbeck Science-Mathematics Center, partnering with regional firms RATIO Design and Russell to modernize one of the campus’s core academic facilities.
The project is funded through a $10 million grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Work will focus on the building’s C-Wing, which houses chemistry classrooms and labs, faculty offices, common areas and key building systems.
The center is home to Knox’s biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, physics and psychology departments, as well as the Amott Science Commons and the College’s Makerspace Hub.
“Knox is grateful to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity for their investment in Knox, the State of Illinois for its investment in higher education across the state, and our partners, RATIO and Russell, as we embark on this transformative capital project,” Knox President C. Andrew McGadney said in a statement. “As an historic campus, investments in academic buildings and infrastructure are crucial to ensuring that teaching and learning takes place in modern, state-of-the-art facilities.”
The renovation effort began in September, when RATIO Design launched a series of discovery and feedback sessions with faculty and staff. Principal Rebecca Hinz said the redesign will “enhance interdisciplinary campus-wide connections, advance functionality and provide future adaptability for STEM teaching and research.”
Russell, the project’s construction partner, has been participating in the planning sessions to secure materials and finalize construction sequencing. The planning phase is expected to last about 12 months, followed immediately by construction.
“At the heart of this project are the students and educators who make Knox College such a remarkable community,” said Matt Rebro, vice president at Russell. “This facility will create modern, accessible, and energy-efficient spaces that inspire the next generation of scientists, engineers, and scholars.”
Knox has also convened a renovation steering committee composed of administrators, faculty and staff to guide the project. Committee members include senior academic leaders, operations staff and department chairs who will work closely with RATIO and Russell on program needs and design decisions.
Associate Professor of Chemistry Helen M. Hoyt said modernizing the center’s infrastructure is essential to maintaining rigorous undergraduate research opportunities.
“Research at the frontier of chemistry is challenging. It necessarily requires an immense amount of infrastructure to provide a controlled laboratory environment,” Hoyt said. “Modernizing these systems will enable future generations of Knox science students and faculty to ask and answer their own research questions.”
The project marks the first major update to the building since 2020, when Knox completed renovations to the center’s entryway and central learning core. That phase expanded the atrium—now home to a 55-foot fin whale skeleton—while adding new classrooms, study areas and the Amott Science Commons.
“This latest renovation … will provide our STEM faculty and students with spaces that embrace a new standard for interaction, instruction and research,” McGadney said.
