ODESSA, Texas — The University of Texas Permian Basin held a preview event Wednesday for their library renovations.
The renovations include innovation spaces for students, an esports arena, updated study spaces and a maker space.
“Not finished the renovation completely yet, but we've already seen students coming in and taking advantage of the space, and studying, and grabbing a table, and getting comfortable," said Brian Shedd, executive director of the office of innovation and commercialization at UTPB. "That has been amazing to see, just the fact that everybody is already here and excited for this space to come online.”
One of the spaces people are most excited for is the esports arena, which will have high end computers and game consoles for students to use during events.
They feel the space can benefit students’ education as well, even taking cues from Ector County ISD.
“So there’s really interesting connections with ECISD, in fact we have some representatives from ECISD and the technology department there that are also looking into bringing esports into primary schools," said Shedd. "The reason is, it’s a good gateway to technology fields like computer science or electrical engineering. So, what you kind of learn through gaming is also applicable in the classroom in those fields.”
The renovations for the library cost roughly $4 million.
While the only things left to finish in the library are things like electrical and lighting work, the construction itself is complete and the floor is ready to be used by students and faculty.