Fundraising for the new Alumni and Visitors Center is on schedule, said Mike Malone, vice president of University Relations and Development.

Alumni Association is looking to move out of the current Alumni House, 231 N. Annie Glidden Road, and into a 36,000 square-foot building.

The association set a goal to receive $6.2 million in donations before the Homecoming football game in October. Malone said they already have raised $4.2 million, thanks in part to a $2.5 million donation from Dennis and Stacey Barsema and several other large gifts from alumni.

Malone said they want the facility to be a shrine to NIU and also to feature accomplishments of alumni and faculty.

Besides the “Great Hall,” which will include alumni achievements, the center will house a faculty library. It will contain books and artwork that were created by NIU faculty members.

The old Alumni House will be torn down, and the new building will be built on the same ground, which is a location Malone said is ideal.

“The building will fit right on the corner and looks like a house,” Malone said. “It’s one of the best locations for an alumni center.”

Robert Fioretti, president of the Alumni Association, said the new building will energize the alumni and prospective students looking to make NIU their college.

“This Alumni and Visitors Center will symbolize a strong commitment between NIU and the loyal alum,” Fioretti said. “It really shows a strong statement of pride.”

The center also will be rented out to organizations throughout the year. Malone said they hope to use the revenue generated by such events to support alumni programming and scholarships.

Although no start date for construction has been set, Malone said once the ground is broken, construction should take anywhere from 12 to 16 months to complete.

For more building renderings, www.niu.edu/pubaffairs/