By Morgan Kroll
“We owe a great thanks to the Owen Century Partners for fueling our mission of delivering a world-class business education on a personal scale and for making this the first donor-led project on campus,” Dean Johnson said. He noted the $55 million capital project will help “Owen to remain competitive with its peers, foster work across disciplines and enhance our connection to Nashville’s energetic business community.”
Construction is currently underway on the project—the largest of its kind in the school’s history—which will increase Owen’s space by 50 percent. The 48,000-square foot expansion will include a new front door, additional classrooms, expanded workspaces, a new caf , and flexible indoor and outdoor event spaces to better accommodate Owen students, faculty, alumni, staff and visitors.
Architectural firm William Rawn Associates is helming the project and solicited feedback from multiple stakeholder groups to inform their plans. The firm has focused on emphasizing the school’s collegial atmosphere and designed areas to foster collaboration, improve the student experience and create a more welcoming environment for the wider Vanderbilt and Nashville business communities.
“As we approach Vanderbilt’s 150th anniversary, during a historic time of challenges, perseverance and overcoming obstacles, groundbreakings are symbolic moments when we look to our past but also toward the future,” Chancellor Daniel Diermeier said. “We want to build on our current success and build an even brighter future for the Owen school, based on ideas of sustainable growth, innovation and impact.”
The Owen Century Partners initially committed more than $13 million in gifts in honor of the Owen School’s 50th anniversary in 2020 and have since committed more than $7 million in additional gifts. Management Hall was constructed in 1982, thanks to leadership gifts at that time to Vanderbilt’s Centennial Campaign. Along with the Walker Management Library, incorporated into the building is historic Mechanical Engineering Hall—known as “Old Mechanical”—a Victorian structure built in 1888 to house the university’s engineering program.
“Boldly setting, achieving and exceeding high aspirations is a hallmark of what Owen stands for, and it was Owen Century Partners that made it possible,” Diermeier said. “They set this ambitious goal, they got it done and they exceeded our original fundraising goal— maximizing unique opportunities to scale up while other universities were cutting back.”
As we approach Vanderbilt’s 150th anniversary, during a historic time of challenges, perseverance and overcoming obstacles, groundbreakings are symbolic moments when we look to our past but also toward the future. – Chancellor Daniel Diermeier
The project is scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2022. Virtual tours of the project are available on Owen’s website. A recording of the groundbreaking ceremony can be found on Owen’s YouTube channel.
Below, renderings from William Rawn Associates, Architects, Inc., show a bird’s-eye view and an exterior elevation of the Management Hall expansion and renovatio
