(PRWEB) June 16, 2006 -— The Wachovia Foundation awarded Huston-Tillotson University $100,000 in support of the Wachovia Business Resource and Training Center that will be housed in the newly renovated and historic Anthony and Louise Viaer-Alumni Hall, formerly the Old Administration Building (OAB).
The Resource Center will be designed as a one-stop center dedicated to meeting the training and employment needs of community residents and industry-specific businesses.
“At Wachovia, we focus on building the strength of every community where we do business,” said Bill Wilson, president of Wachovia’s Central Texas region. “It is a privilege for us to fund the Wachovia Business Resource and Training Center at Huston-Tillotson. We see it as a solid investment in the future of the university, the people it serves and the entire Austin region.”
Timely information as well as various types of management and technical support will be available. In addition, officials at the Resource Center intend to work closely with Texas Workforce to provide job search information to local residents in an effort to enhance their chances of achieving employment. Finally, various job training programs such as entrepreneurship, computer applications, and industry specific training (i.e. bank teller training, and call center training, etc.) are in the works.
The newly formed School of Business and Technology, headed by Dr. Steven Edmond will manage the Resource Center. “HT is an optimal environment for the management of this initiative,” Edmond said. “The University has the professional expertise of faculty and the administrative infrastructure to support the direction and implementation of the project.”
Work on renovating the OAB has been under way since 2004. The grand opening is scheduled for October 27, 2006. Funding for the preservation and restoration of the building has come from alumni and friends, led by alumnus Viaer and alumna Bertha Sadler Means. Other funding came through the Department of Interior Appropriations Act, The United Methodist Church Black College Fund, the Austin Convention and Visitor’s Bureau heritage program, and the Texas Historical Commission.
The building, a stately memorial to an earlier generation’s commitment to education, self-help, and empowerment of African American people, was constructed between 1913-1914. Tillotson College students in the Industrial Arts program made the cinder blocks from which the structure was built. These students also assisted with the construction of the building. In 1952 Tillotson College and Samuel Huston College merged, and the structure was one of three remaining buildings from Tillotson College. None of the buildings from the Samuel Huston College campus remains at the site, which now serves as the access road adjacent to IH-35 on Twelfth Street and is designated with a historical marker. Once the center of campus activities with its administrative offices, library, and classrooms, the building sat vacant from 1969 to August 2004 when the Institutional Advancement offices occupied the edifice.
The 93-year old, three-story structure is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and designated with a Texas Historical Marker as a Texas Historical Site. The exterior contains its initial subtle, but majestic splendor depicting the distinctive “Modified Prairie” school of architecture developed by Frank Lloyd Wright and typical of the urban Southwest during the early 20th century. In the interior of the building, the pressed metal ceilings, hardwood floors, prominent wooden staircases, and door trims reflect the past.
Alan Y. Taniguchi Architects & Associates completed the design plans for the restoration work by VRW Construction Company, Inc.
Huston-Tillotson is an historically black university, offering Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor Science degrees in 15 areas of study.
The Wachovia Foundation is a private foundation that is funded annually by Wachovia Corporation to provide grants to eligible 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations in the areas of education, community development, health and human services, and arts and culture.
