Diocese will build new Catholic student center in Kingsville

Officials from Texas A&M University-Kingsville and the Diocese of Corpus Christi executed a land exchange agreement on June 25 that paves the way for construction of new Catholic Student Center on campus.
 
Under the agreement, Texas A&M-Kingsville will exchange approximately five acres of unimproved land with the Diocese of Corpus Christi and receive in return the property now used for the St. Thomas Aquinas student center located on Santa Gertrudis Street in Kingsville. The land is situated on the northwest corner of the campus, off Corral Street.
 
Under the agreement, the diocese will continue to operate the St. Thomas Aquinas Center for another year at its present location.
 
University president Steven H. Tallant said this is probably the most significant project the university has undertaken during his tenure.
 
Plans call for the diocese to build a Newman Center, which will include a chapel and student center. The Newman Connection, a limited liability company formed to construct student housing for the Catholic Church, will also construct a dormitory on the property to house as many as 300 students, with the potential for future growth.
 
Newman Centers are residence and Catholic ministry centers at or near non-Catholic universities throughout the world.  The centers provide pastoral services and ministries to the Roman Catholic student population within the universities. Students of all faiths are welcome to participate and often take advantage of the services available through their campus Newman Center.
 
While there are dozens of Newman Centers in the country, the project at TAMUK will be one of only a handful in the nation that will have a residential component.
 
A groundbreaking for the project will probably be held in September, according to Orlando Zepeda, Construction and Property Manager for the diocese. The dormitories are scheduled to be ready for occupancy in the fall of 2013.
 
The project is part of the diocese’s Legacy of Faith ~ Future of Hope capital campaign currently underway. The diocese will raise $2.5 million for the Newman Center, including $1.5 million for the chapel, $500,000 for center and $500,000 for an endowment to operate the center. The endowment will total $952,000, with the John G. and Marie Stella Kenedy Memorial Foundation already having contributed $452,000.