Vest Student Union Dedication Ceremony

 

Dr. Jo Alice Blondin, Chancellor of Arkansas Tech University – Ozark, welcomed a crowd of more than 200 guests during the Dedication Ceremony of the Alvin F. Vest Student Union held on Tuesday, April 26.

Dr. Blondin observed, “This space is, happily and completely, transformed. Many individuals contributed to this transformation, and I will thank each in turn. Thank you, Dr. Brown and the Board of Trustees, for your leadership and support. Thank you, Mr. Rick Redden for your creativity and vision. Thank you Mr. Gerald Prince, for your hard work and commitment to this project; and thank you, faculty, staff, and students, for your input and insight.”

Blondin added, “Thank you, Vest family, for all the ways that you have contributed to the Ozark Campus’s success. This building bears the name of your husband and father, and our first director, Mr. Alvin F. Vest, and we dedicate the Alvin F. Vest Student Union to his memory, and his unwavering commitment to students and lasting impact on education in Ozark and the region.”

During the ceremony Mr. Alvin F. Vest was honored and memorialized for his contributions. The first director of what was then Arkansas Valley Vocational Technical School. The renovation project, retains his name, and builds on the student-centered legacy Vest developed, beginning in 1962.

Vest, in collaboration with the Ozark Chamber of Commerce and Chairman of the County Development Education Committee, began the preliminary work to site a new vocational school in Ozark. Mr. Vest worked tirelessly with the community and business leaders to make the location of this school a reality, and continued his involvement through his twenty years of distinguished service to the institution that would become Arkansas Tech University – Ozark Campus.

Mr. Rick Redden, AMR Architects provided an overview of the $1.73 million project, which will house the bookstore, the library, food service with a coffee shop, and a computer lab.

Ms. Sandy Cheffer, Chief Fiscal Officer, gave closing remarks.

Pictured is William “Bud” and Dr. Jo Harper enjoying the reception that followed the Dedication Ceremony.

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