USU Moab Ribbon-Cutting: Utah State University Celebrates the Opening of a New Campus in Moab

MOAB, Utah — Set to open its doors to students during the summer 2022 semester, Utah State University Moab's new campus building hosted its ribbon-cutting ceremony April 1, 2022. In celebration of USU's first net-zero energy building, members of the public were welcomed to tour the state-of-the-art facilities and spaces for hands-on learning experiences — including new facilities for fabrication and welding, building construction, health professions, science teaching and an Extension demonstration kitchen.

“We are so excited to be celebrating today’s ribbon cutting for the USU Moab building,” said USU President Noelle E. Cockett. “It represents so much for this community.”

With its new campus, USU Moab can now offer even more course options to the community and expand on existing programs with state-of-the-art facilities. This expansion will allow USU Moab to be even better at addressing the needs of the community job market, including nursing, recreation resource management and technical education.

“I think this is going to make a big difference in providing that education to people who can’t just pick up and go to Logan or to Salt Lake to attend college,” said Lianna Etchberger, USU Moab associate vice president. “I really want this community to see this building and this structure as a place that has something for everyone. There truly is something for everyone here.”

The campus will provide space to support several new and expanded programs. A new science teaching laboratory will allow faculty to present hands-on learning opportunities and labs for anatomy and physiology classes. The campus will also now offer new technical education courses in health professions, welding and building construction.

The nursing program will also see several upgrades. These will include a dedicated classroom and a simulation lab that will provide students with enhanced training in high-pressure situations and improve their abilities before they enter the job market.

The new Moab building has a very sustainable design, harnessing solar energy as well as using ground sources for both heating and cooling. Because of this design, the building is estimated to provide 105% of the power that will be consumed annually, producing 276,220 kWh per year. This makes the campus USU’s first net-zero building and will prevent an estimated 196 metric tons of CO2 emissions from being released each year. That is the equivalent of more than 22,000 gallons of consumed gasoline or 216,000 pounds of burned coal.

“Net-zero energy means although this building is still connected to the grid, it is generating more energy, in this case solar power, than is used by the building over the year,” said Alexi Lamm, USU Facilities sustainability coordinator.

The building was constructed by MHTN Architects and Hogan & Associates Construction. Some of its features include solar array parking canopies, PVC-free interior finishes and natural material construction. The building also has water conservation measures, including rain harvesting for native plant gardens and low-flow, water-sense fixtures throughout. These features, which are all designed to facilitate efficiency and a healthy environment, will lead to a projected LEED Silver certification. It is another way USU is looking to be a sustainable place for students to learn.

The new building will also house the Moab Business Resource Center, which provides resources to support small business in the area, as well as USU Extension.

Contributors to the new USU Moab building include Peter Lawson, My Good Fund, the Janet Quinney Lawson Foundation, the Emma Eccles Jones Foundation, the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation, Community Development Finance Alliance, Moab Regional Hospital, Desert Rivers Credit Union, Moab City, Grand County, the Holyoak Family and the Rocky Mountain Power Blue Sky Renewable Energy Grant.

The campus will officially open to students beginning in the summer 2022 semester. For more information, visit moab.usu.edu/newcampus.