University of Arkansas plans journalism and student media center

The University of Arkansas is building a journalism and student media center on the Fayetteville campus.

The new space, the Sue Walk Burnett Journalism and Student Media Center, will be housed in an addition to the second floor of Kimpel Hall, where the journalism department is situated. It will have an integrated newsroom, where students from all journalism disciplines will converge, and a new television studio.

Burnett, an alumna of the university, and her husband have pledged $1 million to help pay for the addition, which is projected to cost $2 million.

"This is a very big deal for our program," says Larry Foley, chair of the Walter J. Lemke Department of Journalism. "This center will provide our students with the hands-on tools needed to be competitive, successful 21st-century media professionals."

Renovation on Kimpel Hall's first floor will be carried out this summer. Work on the second floor of Kimpel and the addition will begin in the fall. This will expand the UATV studio and control room, the main journalism office suite, and the newsroom for all student media outlets. This portion of the renovations should be complete by August 2018