President Gregory Geoffroy called Saturday the biggest day in the history of the College of Business after ground was broken for its new home, the $25.1 million Gerdin Business Building.

Russell and Ann Gerdin of North Liberty donated $10 million to the new building, which will be built where Osborn Cottage once stood.

Labh Hira, interim dean of business, thanked the Gerdins at the ceremony.

“You have our word that we will always respect your word,” he said. “Thank you for investing in our school and in our students.”

Construction on the Gerdin Business Building will begin in December and is slated to be complete by October 2003. The new building will be 111,000 square feet in four floors. There will be a 300-seat auditorium, six-tiered classrooms for 60 students each, computer labs, team rooms, a family room commons area and offices for administration and faculty, Hira said.

Geoffroy thanked the Gerdins for “taking the faculty, staff and most importantly the students under their wing. This is a very big day in the life of the College of Business.”

Owen Newlin, Board of Regents president, said he was pleased with the groundbreaking.

“Congratulations to the university and the College of Business for this groundbreaking,” he said.

The Gerdins said they gave the gift to Iowa State because the building was something the university needed. They wanted to give back to the state of Iowa, since much of their business has been in Iowa, Russ Gerdin said.

“We feel blessed we could do this for the university,” Ann Gerdin said. “It’s just a real honor we could do this.”

Russ and Ann graduated from Moorhead University in Minnesota. Russ is president, chairman and CEO of Heartland Express, Inc., a trucking company he founded in Coralville in 1978.

“[It’s] something about Iowa State,” Russ Gerdin said. “God blessed our family to be smart enough to start a trucking firm . It resulted in money to fund the business building.”

Julie Kaltenheuser, senior in marketing, spoke at the ceremony as the student representative on the new building committee.

“[This] increases the value of degrees students will receive at Iowa State,” she said.