TTU Residence Hall Inspired by University of Florida

Tennessee Tech is looking to develop a unique style of residence hall that is based off a design at the University of Florida.

That building is Infinity Hall, and it’s a combination of living, creative spaces and entrepreneurship opportunities under one roof. University of Florida Associate Director in Housing Mary Jordan said this type of facility can set the tone for how new students approach their education and career.

“We know that in the first six weeks, the first semester and the first year, research tells us that some really important mindsets, skill sets, habits, approaches are formed for college students,” Jordan said. “So to just be like, literally surrounded and inundated with creativity and innovation, I mean it changes the way that students think.”

Jordan said that students get the chance to work with virtual reality, mobile app building, and 3-D  printing. Jordan said having real businesses in the hall sets students up to present professional work from the start.

“They work with our students to do just good design basics for the every student so that they can put together a compelling, aesthetically pleasing power point or poster presentation,” Jordan said. “They get those foundations not in the classroom but they get them just from where they live, and it give them a leg up and starts them off on the right foot for their college career.”

Similar to Tennessee Tech, Jordan said the idea came from a community push to invest in technological entrepreneurship. However, Jordan said a big part of Infinity Hall is showing students entrepreneurship is important for more than just engineering and business majors.

“It’s for artists, it’s for scientists, its for educators, it’s really an interdisciplinary approach,” Jordan said. “It’s really neat for folks who want to build stuff and tinker with it.”

Jordan said if anything could have been done differently for Infinity Hall, she said it would be prioritizing ventilation and infrastructure. Because of having things like a 3-D Metal printer and water milling machine on site.