The construction of the new dorm on South Campus is scheduled to open at the start of the spring 2017 semester.

During the first semester the building is open, the dorm will house some upperclassmen students who will be returning from abroad, according to Donna McGalliard, Dean of Residence Life and Housing.

Then starting in the fall of 2017, it will fully transition into the intended first-year housing facility.

Located beside Collins on Jasper Memory Lane, the new dorm will have a design similar to South.

Although the dorm has yet to be named, it will be 75,000 square feet, house 224 beds, and include both single and double rooms.

Like South, the residence hall will feature media and recreation lounges, kitchens and study spaces on each of the four floors, and other amenities that are intended to foster a sense of community within the dorm.

“The new construction is one element of the Housing Master Plan,” McGalliard said. “Enrollment growth planning and response, managing the three year residency requirement and ensuring that our students have modern amenities in our residential facilities is our goal. The new dorm will act as a nice ‘bookend’ to the first-year community.”

In addition to the modern and user-friendly student spaces, the residence hall will have up-to-date and environmentally conscious technology, meeting LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification standards.

Another aspect that will contribute to a holistic living and learning experience is the in-dorm classroom, which will be used for collaboration and relationship building between faculty and freshmen through the university’s Faculty Fellows Program.

“We are committed to serving the total educational experience of students by providing a climate for the exchange of ideas, an atmosphere for broadening intellectual experiences, and a comfortable setting for the interaction of men and women as social beings,” McGalliard said. “We are very excited about the construction of the new first-year residence hall.”

However, this space won’t only be used by students. The Office of Residence Life and Housing will be moving to the lower level of the building during winter break.

This project is just one aspect of the larger construction plans for Wake Forest, including renovations and additions to the Worrell Professional Center, HES building, Sutton Center, Reynolds Gym and Kitchin, Poteat and Huffman residence halls.

Although the growing pains of construction can be disruptive, the new residence hall and other construction are all a part of the long-term construction plan that Residence Life and Housing worked to create with Ayers Saints Gross in 2009.

The plan was updated just a few years ago with the idea of creating a positive residential experience for incoming first-year students and current students.

McKenzie Maddox also contributed to this article.