St. Joseph’s University celebrated the opening of its $17 million new student center building Friday in the heart of its Patchogue campus.
Amenities of the building include a chapel, art gallery, computer lab and multipurpose room. Students, faculty, administrators and local officials agreed that the addition will have positive impacts on campus life and fostering a sense of community.
“When you look at this structure, it is the living embodiment of that ideal,” St. Joseph’s President Donald Boomgarden said. “A community, as Chris Carroll said, a community that is focused on something great.”
Suffolk County Executive Steven Bellone reflected on how St. Joseph’s has grown during his tenure.
“It speaks to the growth and the dynamism that is happening here on this campus,” said Bellone, calling the building a “tremendous asset” as the school continues to grow.
Brookhaven Town Supervisor Ed Romaine issued a proclamation declaring Oct. 20, 2023 St. Joseph’s University Student Center Day.
“We love St. Joe’s, we hire St. Joe’s graduates, they do wonderful things,” Romaine said.
Maddy Frasgona, president of St. Joseph’s Student Government Association, is a lifelong supporter of St. Joseph’s and is excited to take advantage of the space.
“I can’t imagine what younger me would’ve thought if she saw a giant, beautiful new building being built on her dream campus.” Frasgona said. “Every day came new excitement about the possibilities and opportunities to come, within the new walls.”
As a Jesuit university, Boomgarden also sees parallels between St. Joseph and the university’s newest addition.
“St. Joseph was a carpenter, yes, but he was also a teacher and an educator,” he said. “What we’ve done today, just as what we did last year when we became a university, is we continue to fulfill the goals of the Sisters of St. Joseph’s.”
