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Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi set to receive multimillion dollar funding for new fine arts facility

The current Center for the Arts has struggled to keep up with the demand being placed on it by those who are studying theatre, art, dance and music.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Senate Bill 52, signed earlier this week by Governor Greg Abbott, authorizes more than $3.3 billion for public universities and health institutions across the state under the heading of "Capital Construction Assistance Projects."

One of the schools to benefit will be Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, as they are set to receive $45 million.

As to what to do with that money, leaders of the Island University think the answer is obvious: take a new look at the Center for the Arts.

According to TAMUCC President Dr. Kelly Miller, “Our programs have exploded in growth since the Center for the Arts was built in 1974, and so the program is hundreds of times larger than the original programs.”

The Center has struggled to keep up with the demand being placed on it by those who are studying theatre, art, dance and music.

“This space, believe it or not, is an art space that is not soundproofed,” Miller said. “So, having had my office across the hall from the band room for 12 years, I can tell you that when they practice, it's like they're right there in your space.”

Alison Frost, Chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance, said the tight spaces and lack of soundproofing become obvious at the most inopportune times.

“If we're doing a show in here (in the Warren Theatre), there can't be a show across the hall in the Wilson Theatre,” Frost said. “And if they're rehearsing in the band hall, we can hear them playing. We've actually had a death scene in ‘Hamlet’ and we could hear them practicing ‘Sleigh Ride’ across the hall while Hamlet is taking his last breath.”

Although she can laugh about it, the problem is something that has put music accreditation at risk, and creates the inability to obtain accreditation in theatre and art.

A quick tour confirms the need for additional space, with props being stored on the floor, on theater seats and in hallways where students are sometimes forced to rehearse.

In one classroom, we found costume makers working diligently for the next production. We also found out that most of the costumes have to be stored at a rented facility off campus.

Although no timeline has been set, the plan is to repurpose the current facility and to build a new one. That should allow some programs to spread their wings and expand into spaces they are not currently able to use, while others break in new spaces in a facility that will help TAMUCC continue to be a place that attracts students from across the country.

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