Some call it a game changer, but a new building on OHIO’s Athens Campus was imagined and implemented to be much more—a life changer.

Devoted to the success of Ohio University in all its endeavors, alumni Perry (BSC ’80) and Sandy (BSC ’80, MED ’82) Sook seized an opportunity to make a difference for a diverse group of students, asking Athletics Director Jim Schaus one question. What is the Athletics Department’s greatest need?

The answer: Academics.

A $2.25 million lead gift from the Sooks inspired approximately 400 other donors to fund construction of a facility dedicated to giving back to OHIO students who give their all athletically by supporting them academically.

The Perry and Sandy Sook Academic Center opened in October 2018, complementing historic Peden Stadium and other nearby athletic facilities, and making a clear statement to all who pass through and by it: Academic success is a top priority for OHIO Athletics.

The 25,000-square-foot facility provides dedicated study and instructional support space for over 425 student-athletes. Doubling the size of the stadium’s previous study space, the Sook Center is positioning OHIO Athletics to build upon a strong record of achievement in the classroom. In May 2018, the University reported that all 16 of its intercollegiate programs earned history-making records in NCAA Division I Academic Progress Rates, with three programs securing perfect, nationally-recognized scores.

“Our time as an athlete is limited. There are so few collegiate athletes that take their skills to the professional level,” Kendall Jessing, a senior forward on the Ohio Women’s Basketball Team, said at the Sook Center grand opening. “Athletics will end, but what we do and how we succeed as students follows us for the rest of our lives and builds the important foundation for our entire future.”

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“A lot of people, I’ve noticed, want to start their life when college is over. I want to use what is here now to start my life now.”

Jeffrey Anzo is using a new OHIO resource—started by students, for students and brought to fruition through the generosity of three OHIO graduates—to start his life now.

CoLab opened in Alden Library in September 2018, fulfilling the entrepreneurial vision of OHIO students Alex Kneier (BBA ’16) and Lori Bentz (BBA ’17) who sought to create “a connected and innovation-focused community that creates with the goal of changing the world around us.”

Their concept, known as C-Suite, resonated with David (BSEE ’69, MS ’70) and Tina Pidwell and Winston (BSC ’93) and Tricia (BSHEC ’93) Breeden whose donation transformed C-Suite into CoLab, a space designed to empower, enable and unite students in harnessing the power of their creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship.

Within two months of opening, CoLab was so popular that the University expanded the facility’s hours of operation. During the last five weeks of fall semester, an average of 462 individuals, representing nearly every college on the Athens Campus, were using CoLab on a daily basis.

Anzo, a fourth-year undergraduate pursuing a bachelor of specialized studies degree and a certificate in entrepreneurship, is one of CoLab’s frequent visitors, using the space to transform the Self Discovery Club, a student organization he founded, into a thriving business.

An aspiring life coach and motivational speaker, Anzo’s club helps students develop the tools necessary to navigate life—tools he hopes to compile into packages and curriculum that he can market to colleges and companies.

At CoLab Anzo coaches students, organizes his thoughts, networks with his peers and faculty, and nurtures the entrepreneurial mindset he is cultivating.

“CoLab has given me the opportunity to use my skills in a much more powerful way,” Anzo says. “It allows you to connect your ideas with other people in areas that you might not have ever imagined. That difference in perspective and skillset can be so huge in getting to where you want to be.”

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