To Be Named For Jim W. Henderson, Chair Of ERAU Board Of Trustees

The Daytona Beach campus of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University held a groundbreaking ceremony March 17 for the new Jim W. Henderson Administration and Welcome Center. Construction of the $12 million, 35,000-square-foot building will begin in about a month and is expected to be finished in spring 2012. The building will be located at the main entrance to the campus off Clyde Morris Boulevard, on the former site of the Spruance Hall administration building, which was damaged in a 2006 tornado and subsequently razed.

The new building is named for Jim Henderson, chairman of Embry-Riddle's Board of Trustees. He is the retired president, CEO, and vice chairman of Brown & Brown Inc., one of the largest independent insurance intermediaries in the nation. "We are pleased and proud to name this beautiful new building for someone who is central to the lifeblood of the University, who leads by example, and who has done a great job of guiding the growth of Embry-Riddle over the years," said University President John P. Johnson at the groundbreaking ceremony. "In addition, I want to thank Jim, Brown & Brown, and all the others whose generous donations have made this new building possible."

In his remarks at the ceremony, Henderson said, "Thank you so much for this honor for doing something that I love. What I've learned in life is that friendship motivates us to accomplish great things together."

The new building will serve as a welcoming information center for students and their families, guests, and members of the local community. A 350-seat hall will accommodate community events as well as those of the University. The Henderson Center will also house University administration offices and a meeting room for the Board of Trustees.

 
Jim Henderson

Other attendees at the ceremony included Jim Henderson's wife, Carole; Embry-Riddle's Board of Trustees; Mori Hosseini, vice chairman of the Board of Trustees and chairman of the Facilities & Capital Planning Committee; Chris Hardesty, Embry-Riddle director of planning and construction management; and architect Joe Thompson of Gresham, Smith, and Partners, the firm that designed the new building. The local community was represented by the mayor of Daytona Beach, Glenn Ritchey, and the chairman of the Volusia County Council, Frank Bruno.

The campus is midway through a $178 million construction boom that began in 2005. Nearing completion is the $22.1 million, 99,500-square-foot James Hagedorn Aviation Complex, which encompasses a flight operations center, a fleet maintenance hangar, and classrooms and labs for the Aircraft Maintenance Science Department. Other construction in various stages of planning and design includes a $29.5 million College of Arts & Sciences building (2013 estimated completion), a $31.3 million Student Union (2015), a $3.5 million Athletics Services building (2015), and a $32.5 million Academic Center (2016).

FMI; www.embryriddle.edu