Northeastern Illinois University’s new El Centro facility will open to students Saturday, September 20, 2014, instead of on the official first day of school, Saturday, August 25, 2014.
The construction of El Centro, adjacent to the Kennedy expressway at 3390 N. Avondale Ave., faced unavoidable construction delays, attributed to an especially harsh winter, now resulting in an opening date four weeks later than anticipated.
For the first four weeks of the semester, classes originally scheduled in the new El Centro facility will be held in an alternate location. All El Centro classes will occur at Northeastern’s main campus, 5500 N. St. Louis Ave. in Chicago.
Northeastern Illinois University’s new El Centro building is a 66,000-square-foot, three-story facility, enabling the University to expand its acclaimed academic and community programs.
“Our contractor is doing everything possible to expedite the construction schedule while maintaining a high standard of excellence,” said Richard Helldobler, Northeastern’s provost and vice president for academic affairs. “We are confident our students will be well accommodated in our temporary locations until construction is completed. We are communicating via several channels providing clear and timely progress updates.”
All updates will also be posted on Northeastern’s website: www.neiu/academics/el-centro.
About El Centro
El Centro is one of Northeastern’s five locations in the Chicago area. Founded in the 1960s, El Centro has evolved and grown, now serving both students and the community. El Centro offers an array of academic course offerings, recruitment and admission programs, academic support and co-curricular programs for students, and outreach initiatives for the neighboring community.
About Northeastern Illinois University
Northeastern Illinois University is a fully accredited public university serving 10,000 full and part-time undergraduate and graduate students in the Chicago metropolitan area. Northeastern engages its diverse university community in a rich environment of learning, teaching and scholarship. The University offers more than 80 academic programs in the arts, sciences, education and business. In 2012 Newsweek magazine named Northeastern Illinois University the sixth best investment among all universities in the nation and number one in Illinois. The University also is recognized by U.S. News & World Report as one of the most diverse universities in the United States and is federally designated as a Hispanic Serving Institution.
