WACO, Texas — On Thursday, Baylor University alumni, regents board members, donors and students went on a walkthrough tour to see the construction of the new welcome center that's soon to be entry point to Baylor University.
The Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center is schedule to finish in the Fall of 2023.
"We want this facility to be immersive and experience everything Baylor," Marketing and Communications Vice President Jason Cook said. "So what we're trying to do is bring a lot of technological components to the facility."
As Baylor's popularity continues to grow, campus officials are on a constant search for ways to appeal to prospective students.
They figured a new look in the place where you first get to the campus is the best way to do that.
"Well all of a sudden our official welcoming place for the university is no longer an Exxon gas station," Cook said. "So you look at this area's great corner of I-35, we have 100,000 cars pass every day and this is a really gonna be a showcase for the institution as we move forward."
Campus officials hope this building will be a turning point for the school and the community. The resources and experience at the center is described to be "one-of-a-kind" and they couldn't have done it if not for the kindness of Mark and Paula Hurd.
"The Hurd family stepped up at the very beginning of this campaign," Baylor Advancement Vice President Dave Rosselli said. "This was back in 2018. Before we even launched the campaign publicly. Mark, loved Baylor and his heart and soul was was here at Baylor. Even though he was a CEO in California at Oracle he would spend many of his weekends here in the Waco community."