BYU–Hawaii’s Vice President of Operations Kevin Schlag presented updates to community members about changes to the campus in the coming years on June 7.
According to Schlag, when Elder Jeffrey R. Holland came to President John S.K. “Keoni” Kauwe’s inauguration, he said while what had been done in the past had served BYUH well, “in no way is it sufficient for the trajectory the Church and the university are now on.”
Schlag said Elder Holland’s emphasis on trajectory has inspired many decisions made to update the campus for the future.
Aloha Plaza
The Aloha Plaza is planned to be built where the old cafeteria once was. It will be a central gathering place for students and a place where people can congregate after graduation, with a goal of being finished by December 2023 in time for the Fall 2023 commencement.
Married Student Housing (TVA)
Schlag said the TVA units differ in age from 10 years old to 40 or 50 years old, with some in need of repairs. Currently, there are 398 units, and BYUH has the goal of expanding to 506 units by 2026.
Single Student Housing (Hales)
Schlag showed the progress on construction of Hales 11, 12 and 13. Hale 13 will be finished in early 2025, he said, with Hale 12 following later that year, and Hale 11 in early 2026. This will add 900 bed spaces for students, allowing BYUH to admit more students. This move will also free up nearly 200 units of housing space for community use. The goal, Schlag said, is to have around 90 to 95 percent of students living on campus. “The data is pretty compelling. They do better academically, they do better emotionally, they do better ecclesiastically when they live on campus, and so we are hoping to incentivize that as much as possible,” he said.
Solar Project
The solar panels currently placed around campus are part of Phase I of the university’s solar project, Schlag said, and now provide about a third of the campus’ energy needs, along with four to six hours of battery backup. BYUH will soon start Phase II, which has the goal of 100 percent of the school’s energy needs being provided by solar power, with four to five days’ worth of battery backup, by the end of 2024. Five acres of solar panels will be placed in the old quarry and in the back parking lot by the Polynesian Cultural Center warehouse.
Schlag said BYUH is working with the Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) to connect PCC and the Laie Hawaii Temple to its solar power system.
New McKay complex
Schlag then explained the changes being made to the McKay complex, emphasizing at the meeting, many of the images and renderings presented are conceptual and have not yet been approved. According to him, the Board of Trustees have committed an unprecedented amount of resources to help the university prepare for the next 50 to 75 years. He said this was an inflection point in the history of BYUH, with planned construction of six new buildings and a goal of 75 percent of students to be from Asia and Oceania.
The McKay Foyer is scheduled to be replaced by a Welcome Center, which will also contain student-related services like Human Resources, Financial Aid and Financial Services. New, larger classroom buildings will also be built. A student union building will replace the Aloha Center and contain the Hub, the Seasider, tutoring and academic advising. Schlag said the goal is to keep student services all in one place, so students don’t have to go back and forth across campus.
Academic Vice President Isaiah Walker, said the new Welcome Center will be an opportunity to tell Laie’s story in a more holistic way “that can include so much more of the stories not only from the past, but from the present, and honor people today. I think that the community could be a part of building that story.”
A studio theater to replace the McKay Auditorium will be built where the Aloha Center. Additionally, the Lorenzo Snow building will be demolished, and its offices moved into the new McKay complex.
With all the changes coming, community member Kekela Miller, said, “We want to come together. We want to make sure that the outside world knows we are going to be pono [or good and right].”
Anyone who wishes to submit suggestions about the updates may email new.mckay@byuh.edu.