“I think it’s one of the most significant things to happen to our community in a long time. If you study anything about urban life, adding an educational institution like USC Upstate, there’s nothing better. I think this is better than anything else we could do because the key to our future is education.”
—George Dean Johnson, Jr.
Floor Plans and Architectural Renderings
Opportunities for Giving
Photo Gallery
Construction Updates and Live Web Cam
On November 6, 2008, the University of South Carolina Upstate broke ground on the new downtown location of the George Dean Johnson, Jr. College of Business and Economics in the heart of the city of Spartanburg. The new facility will be located adjacent to the Chapman Cultural Center in the Renaissance Park facing St. John Street. A Topping Out Ceremony was held on Friday, July 31, to celebrate the overall completion of the building structure and the placement of the final beam of steel to the highest point of the building.
A new building is critical to the direction and mission of the College as we build engagement with students and business professionals into recognized program of academic distinction. Modern facilities provide current technology, shared space for executive and continuing education opportunities, and a "Class A" office environment that welcomes and serves the business community.
This new facility will relieve pressures on restricted space for teaching and learning through the creation of sufficient classrooms and offices for future growth. In addition, the new facility will permit the development of specialized instructional space including dedicated computer labs with business software, a stock market trading room for finance classes, and classrooms with computers to permit students to individually run educational software during class. It will also support executive education and other academic outreach activities, enabling expanded services for small businesses and connecting business leaders with the University and its students.
Learn more about the college's namesake,
George Dean Johnson, Jr.
“I think it’s a terrific step forward for the community and reaffirms the metropolitan mission of the University. It squarely puts them in the urban center of our city, and I hope it leads to an incubator program that could potentially bring entrepreneurs so we home-grow the next generation of creative thinkers.”
—Mayor Bill Barnet