Iowa State’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering unveiled plans for a unique facility intended to promote active learning at an undergraduate forum in Coover Hall Wednesday night.

The main focus of the forum was the renovation taking place in Coover Hall.

Around 100 students attended the forum to voice their opinions on the proposed renovations.

Lynette Sherer, a business administrator at ISU, outlined the preliminary plans for an active-learning center and other renovations.

Sherer said the active-learning center will be located in the current High Bay space in Coover.

“I’m very excited about it,” Sherer said of the active-learning center. The active-learning center is being designed to emphasize team learning and will consist of clusters of work space.

The clusters will include comfortable modular furniture, computers, white boards, printers, scanners and copiers, Sherer said.

“[The clusters] will be as flexible as possible so you can make the best use of space,” Sherer said.

Groups of anywhere from six to 80 people will be able to meet in the active-learning center, said Dr. S. S. Venkata, electrical engineering professor and chair of the department. “This is your place to learn,” Venkata said.

Students will soon be able to “walk through” a computer-aided drafting plan of the center on the department’s Web site, Sherer said.

She said construction of the active-learning center will take place from March to July 1998.

Sherer also described proposed renovations of the circuits lab, Cyclone lab, advising center, the third floor of Coover Hall and the third floor of Durham Hall.

Sherer said other plans in the works include room-number changes to be made over winter break, the introduction of hall monitors and renovation of the front patio of Coover.

“This is a 1950s building,” Venkata said. “If it was a wine, it would be nice, but it’s not; it’s a building.”

Venkata said the electrical and computer-engineering department is in good shape in every aspect except space.

Venkata asked the students who attended the forum to voice their opinions on the proposed renovations.

A primary concern of the students was how late the new labs will be kept open. “How many hours do you want the labs to be open?” Venkata asked.

A resounding “24 hours” was the answer.

“The ideal student doesn’t know the difference between sunset and sunrise,” Venkata said.

To loud applause, one student asked if the department has any plans to upgrade the networking infrastructure.

“We are planning on upgrading the infrastructure,” said Doug Jacobson, an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering. “We have been talking to Telecommunications.”

Other concerns dealt with more table space needed in the center’s design, the location of new computers, SGI accounts, air conditioning and heating, hall monitors, restrooms and registration.