Albright College has been awarded a $1 million Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP) grant, which will help renovate Gingrich Library, located on the college’s N. 13th Street, Reading, Pa. campus. RACP is a state grant program administered by the Office of the Budget for the acquisition and construction of regional economic, cultural, civic, recreational, and historical improvement projects.
The college’s Student Success Commons & Library renovation project aims to impact student success while enhancing community partnerships through expanded educational and cultural opportunities. The project’s total estimated cost is $15,001,900.
Housed within this public facility will be a Learning Commons, Student Success Services, a History and Cultural Center, a Writing Lab, offices and multi-purpose spaces for meetings and events. The History and Cultural Center will be home to the college’s growing archival repository that include the Central Pennsylvania African American Museum collection, the Lakin Holocaust Resource Center, Albright Archives and the Nolan Local History collection. These resources will be open to the Greater Reading community as well as scholars from Albright and abroad.
Generating 150-200 construction jobs, Albright’s much-anticipated Student Success Commons & Library renovation project is expected to take place in a single phase by reusing existing structural components of the building while replacing the building’s façade and roof, and upgrading infrastructure to meet new program and code requirements. An accessible elevator, ADA restrooms, fire suppression and alarm systems, lighting and energy efficient HVAC systems will be added to the building.
Economic Ripple of Community Anchor Institutions
Combined with student and visitor spending, the day-to-day expenditures of community anchor institutions such as Albright College have demonstrated a ripple effect throughout local and state economies.
A 2018 study by the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania (AICUP) revealed that Albright impacts Pennsylvania’s economy to the tune of 102.4 million each year. The college supports and sustains 1,094 jobs across the state through direct employment as well as indirect jobs that support the institution’s faculty, staff, students and visitors. In addition, the college generates more than $4.8 million tax revenues for state and local governments, annually.
