The Scot Center is the recreation center for students and alumni at the College of Wooster, Ohio, United States. Construction was completed in January 2012 at a cost of roughly 30 million dollars. Home to the Fighting Scots, the center offers a wide assortment of fitness equipment available to both college athletes and the community. It was built to improve athletics and overall fitness at the college. The previous recreation facility for the college, Armington Physical Education Center (the PEC), was adequate. However, an increased demand for high-end facilities pressured the administration and the board of trustees to build the Scot Center. The 123,000 square-foot facility houses four intramural courts for basketball, tennis and volleyball that are put to use daily.
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Construction
The Bogner Construction Company began building The Scot Center on May 11, 2010. During the construction process, 35,000 cubic yards of rock and earth were moved, and 6,364 cubic yards of concrete was poured. With 30 crew members and more than 212,940 man-hours throughout December 2011, the center was completed January 2012.
Description
The Scot Center consists of four floors, the basement which houses the center’s new locker rooms, an aerobic studio, and the governance conference room. The fourth floor includes all of the coach’s offices, classrooms, and an observation deck.
The facilities other features lie on the first floor, which contain two weight rooms as well as a NCAA regulation track. Which is divided into four basketball courts, tennis, and volleyball courts, all surrounded with a netting material that can enclose this space or divide it into sections. In addition there is an indoor long jump, triple jump, and pole-vaulting area. This 200-meter track is equipped with the same material used in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, mondotrack. Mondotrack is prefabricated synthetic rubber track surfacing, vulcanized with a particular closed cell structure, with consistent thickness. This material is hard enough to bounce a ball but feels like a sponge when running on it. These features allow the college of Wooster to hold NCAA regulation track meets. The Scot Center also contains two new weight rooms, which both are outfitted with Legend fitness equipment. Legend fitness’s most recent clients include the New York Mets, Florida Panthers, and Ohio State University. In addition to the Gault recreational room, is the Ruth W & A. Morris Williams, Jr. fitness room, and the Swigart strength room. Both rooms are equipped with a variety of fitness equipment. All treadmills and ellipticals have built in televisions and iPod docking stations.
Going green
The Scot Center offers a variance of perks benefiting not only the college’s goal to become greener but also the students and faculty as well. The three main aspects that benefit the college community are the energy efficient solar panels, motion sensor water fountains and lighting. The college is in the process of trying to obtain LEED certification for the center.
LEED certification
LEED, The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design provides buildings with the tools for recognizing and maintaining a sustainable water saving, energy efficient, all around eco-friendly building. The Green Building Certification Institute GBCI administers the LEED certification for all commercial and institutional projects registered under any LEED Rating System. The Scot Center produces 271,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, according to The College of Wooster this is enough to fully power one of the college’s residence halls. The College is seeking to receive LEED certification for the Scot Center.
Solar panels
The solar panels on the roof of the Scot Center are the largest at any college in the United States. Carbon Vision of Shaker Heights, Ohio constructed the 20,000 square foot solar paneled roof, which conducts 271,000-kilowatt hours per year of electricity. The college will lease the roof currently owned by Carbon Vision, and purchase all of the power generated for the next twelve and a half years. As of April 19, 2012 the Scot Center had generated 177,933.69 Kilowatt-hours in electricity. This is equal to 1,015 sixty-watt light bulbs being in use for one year of 8-hour days. In addition to the energy creating solar panels, the Scot Center is invested in energy saving technology for the inside of the facility as well. Motion sensors were installed into the lights and all the vending machines located throughout the center. This is another way for the Scot Center to save energy while some sections are not being used as continuously as others.
Water fountains
Elkay's EZH2O, are the water fountains the hydrate students in the Scot Center. These water fountains allow for students to conveniently refill water bottles. This in turn decreases the use of plastic bottles, and aids in reducing the carbon footprint of the school. The water fountains fit in perfectly with the eco-friendly approach the College of Wooster is taking with the Scot Center.
Donors and funding
Stanley C. Gault, a College of Wooster alumni, and his wife Flo K. Gault are two of the major donors to the college, and contributed a great amount to the Scot Center. Due to the Gault’s contribution the room in which the track and the multi-purpose courts are located have been dedicated to the Gault’s. In the past the Gault’s have helped fund many different areas and buildings on the college’s campus. Stanley C. Gault spent 31 years with General Electric before being named the CEO of Rubbermaid based in Wooster, Ohio.(wiki page for mr. Gault).
Many alumni have donated to the Scot Center, but the Class of 1961 specifically headed a large donation project to help fund the center. Along with that the class of 1965 also began taking donations for the Scot Center. Other donation events included a special Brick campaign conducted by the college to receive donations towards the center. Donors could purchase a personalized brick that would be placed outside the main entrance of the Scot Center. The class of 1961 purchased an extra large brick to help with the construction of the facility. Donors were a crucial part to the success and completion of the Scot Center.
Community
The Scot Center has provided athletic teams of the college with the equipment to play at their highest skill level. However, varsity athletes are not the only organizations making use of the center, from relay for life, a benefit that raises money for cancer research, to the men of Harambee, a multi ethnic group that hosts their annual formal in the governance room. Another significant event that occurred at the center was the signing of the beam, that occurred on October 22, 2010 gave many community members, students and staff the chance to leave a lasting mark on the new athletic and campus facility. The purpose of the signing the beam was to create a lasting mark upon the center, not only by incoming students and previous staff but also the graduating class. Joe Suliman ’11, “even though I am a senior and won’t be able to use the new facility while being a student, I know my mark will be left on the new Scot Center and Fighting Scots Athletics.” Although the new Scot Center is mainly an athletic facility, it is an important addition to not only the college but students as well.