Shawn Warner

The DeWitt Student Center opened in 1967 and for 55 years served as the heartbeat for Northwest College. It holds countless memories for generations of alumni and was a proud monument to excellence and opportunity for scores of past students.

While the spirit of the DeWitt Student Center will live on in perpetuity, the building more than served its useful life. From an engineering perspective it had become a ‘Life and Safety’ liability with no economic path to salvation.

The structural integrity of the building was failing at an accelerated rate. Reinforcing steel and structural steel decking had long been exposed to the elements, and Mother Nature was winning the battle. Concrete ramps, sidewalks and entry ways were continuing to decay. Needed structural modifications would have been excessively expensive with no corresponding value to be gained.

Accessibility was another difficult challenge due to the nature of the bi-level construction. An extensive ramp system was required to provide ADA access. Those ramps were cumbersome during the best of conditions and dangerous during the inclement weather. The lone elevator in the facility was a service elevator originally intended to transport food and other materials to the lower level. It was not a reasonable configuration for those needing the use of an elevator for mobility purposes.

The basement of the DeWitt Student Center held the kitchen and dining hall. It was accessed by a steep set of stairs that could be daunting for those with physical disabilities. To make matters worse, the aged sanitary sewer system had outlived its useful lifespan and routinely collapsed. The cost and timeliness of repairing under slab sewer lines in the basement was less than ideal, keeping in mind this is where food was prepared and consumed.

NWC’s tradition of academic excellence could no longer be served by the DeWitt Student Center. A new facility removes a giant safety liability to which none of us should tolerate sending our children, friends, and neighbors.  

We must also consider the benefits that will come from a new building containing modern technology and beautiful architecture that can bring out the best of students, faculty, and staff.

Building a new student center was the best decision the NWC trustees could make. It is the college’s  no. 1 facility project.

Northwest College is a critical part of the greater Park County community. It needs your support!  

(Shawn Warner is the NWC Foundation board president and a licensed professional engineer who graduated from NWC in 1990.)