User:Eneyo1/M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center

The M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center (commonly referred to as the Yeh Center) is newest addition to the Nathan M. Newmark Civil Engineering Laboratory of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It is located a block north of the John Bardeen Engineering Quad on North Mathews Street in Urbana, Illinois. The M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center serves the UIUC College of Engineering’s Civil and Environmental Engineering Department. In 2011 it became the newest addition to the College of Engineering that was funded by gifts and donations, primarily from alumnus M.T. Geoffrey Yeh. M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center serves the UIUC College of Engineering’s Civil and Environmental Engineering Department students with its registered student organization offices, computer lab, and general study area. The building features state-of-the-art technology with its LEED Silver Certification, sustainable green roof and living laboratory.

Construction and Development
The Yeh Center serves as the student center which was initially envisioned for the development of the Newmark Civil Engineering Laboratory in 1965. In 2006, the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department approached Dr. Geoffrey Yeh, a successful alumnus, engineer and philanthropist. The construction company Teng and Associates, Inc. was awarded the bid for construction. Groundbreaking was held on April 7, 2010. As construction finished in July 2011, all 1,300 Civil and Environmental Engineering Students had access to the center at the beginning of the Fall 2011 semester. Dr. Yeh gave the keynote address, stating, “Today is a very special day for me…It is special because I am standing in this beautiful facility, thanking the donors whose generosity enabled me then as a student to follow my passion and transformed my life.”

M.T. Geoffrey Yeh
University of Illinois alumnus Dr. Geoffrey Yeh was at the forefront of fulfilling the vision of the Newmark Laboratory and finding funds to do so. Yeh, born in Shanghai, China in 1931, graduated from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering in 1953 with a Bachelors of Science Degree. Among his other philanthropic and alumni involvement include his creation of the M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Graudate Research Fellowship in 1994 and the M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Endowed Chair in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department (1998). He is a 2010 Distinguished Alumnus of CEE.

Classrooms and Lecture Halls
The Yeh Center houses seven classrooms, a conference room, a student study area, informal seating areas, computers available for student use as well as offices for registered student organizations on two floors. The state-of-the-art classrooms are equipped with auditorium-style seating, chairs that allow storage beneath, as well as built in projectors and computers for the lecturer. The lobby features a glass wall installation designed around a civil and environmental engineering theme by local design firm McKenzie Wagner, Inc.

Technology and Sustainability
The Yeh Center is considered a living laboratory as it features new age technology and a green roof. The building meets the standards for Silver Certification through the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) which is the third highest level of certification. The certification comes from considering indoor environmental quality, sustainable sites, energy and atmosphere, water efficiency, and materials and resources. The building features a green roof which entirely covers the roof in soil and growing plant life. It is beneficial and sustainable in that it provides storm water management, reduced energy cost and increased roof life. In addition, the “living laboratory” links the physical structure of the building to displays fed by wireless sensors which will show long-span vibrations and energy consumption.

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