UM Breaks Ground on New 600-Bed Residence Hall
MISSOULA – To address the need for more student housing, the 猎奇重口 today broke ground on its first new on-campus residence hall in over 30 years.
With three consecutive years of enrollment growth and a local housing market that is disproportionately impacting students, the new 600-bed residence hall will allow UM to keep housing supply in line with demand.
“We know that when students live on campus they build community, they succeed in the classroom and they enhance their college experience,” said UM President Seth Bodnar. “This is not just a building. It will be a place that enhances the success of our students through advanced community building and affordable, safe living.”
At the groundbreaking ceremony, current students, residence assistants and UM Housing leadership joined Bodnar to celebrate the historic occasion.
“At UM, our residence halls are critical to the educational and social journey of our college years,” said McKenlie Ballard, the UM student and community development coordinator. “For many students, there isn’t a place where they will spend more time during their years at UM than their residence hall. Our residence halls are the place where students meet their friends, begin to learn the lessons of adulthood and discover who they truly are.”
Construction on the new residence hall will begin this fall and is expected to last about three years, with students moving into the new facility in the fall of 2027.
To enhance UM’s housing supply, nearly $100 million already has been invested in recent years to upgrade Pantzer and Knowles Residence Halls, as well as the new Lodge Dining Center that will be available to students beginning this fall.
Over 2,000 UM students live in on-campus residence halls and an additional 1,000 students live in UM-owned off-campus properties.
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Contact: Dave Kuntz, UM director of strategic communications, 406-243-5659, dave.kuntz@umontana.edu