Founded on the eastern foothills of the Portneuf River valley in Pocatello, Idaho State University has been welcoming students to its campus since 1901. In 1966, ISU became the
State’s designated leader for training and educating health care professionals.
The Life Sciences complex of buildings at Idaho State University in Pocatello is referred to as the “heartbeat” of the campus. It features the Lecture Center, the Gale Life Science building, and the Beckley Nursing building. In 1970, by 20th century standards, the facilities were considered state of the art.
In the past year, the primary lecture hall in the Lecture Center was renovated. Antiquated desks were removed, carpet replaced, and modern technology installed. This modernization and renovation project was completed using Lottery dividends through the Permanent Building Fund. This lecture hall, at one time or another, will see approximately 1/3 of all ISU students attend a class here, as well as hosting team meetings and film review sessions for the ISU Bengals football team.
Idaho State University, and all the public college campuses, constitute a good many of the State of Idaho’s permanent buildings. Since 1961, the Permanent Building Fund Advisory Council (PBFAC) was established to oversee the maintenance, repair, and capital construction for the State’s facilities. Each year, the Idaho Lottery sends 3/8 of its annual dividend to support improvements to State parks, renovations to administrative buildings, or for alteration and repair projects on our college campuses. In thirty-four years, this totals over half-a-billion dollars.
Completing these construction projects are Idahoans working for Idaho companies. They are local tradesmen, craftsmen, electricians, plumbers, architects, and engineers. Any given project may involve any number of contractors and subcontractors to create updated, safe, and modern facilities, capitalizing on the millions of dollars that support local businesses from the play of Idaho Lottery participants.
Each year, the PBFAC prioritizes and decides which facilities are taken care of based on need, timeliness, and cost. It is a massive undertaking to coordinate. The need is real and often exceeds the resources appropriated. Take the Life Sciences facility at ISU for example. It is 53 years old, built before the introduction of the microchip. The building’s design, though modern for the 1970s, isn’t flexible enough today to accommodate building-wide WiFi without significant cost and investment. As the flagship for Health Sciences, the campus is developing plans for a new, 21st century modern facility to replace the aging facility.
The Idaho Lottery is pleased to do its part to provide the resources necessary for the Department of Administration’s Division of Public Works and the Permanent Building Advisory Council to continue improving the State’s facilities, one building at a time.
