This summer, UW–Madison is honoring the 175th anniversary of its incorporation, which took place on July 26, 1848. At the Wisconsin Alumni Association, we’re celebrating by reflecting on the past and looking to the future.
Although we can’t actually predict what the next 175 years at UW–Madison will look like (we’ve tried), we can show you which new and upcoming building projects will be a part of the UW’s near future.
Hamel Music Center
Opened in fall 2019, the award-winning Hamel Music Center (pictured above) is the newest rehearsal and performance home of the Mead Witter School of Music. The expansive 80,000-square-foot building holds practice spaces for students, as well as a concert hall, recital hall, rehearsal hall, two dressing rooms, and a recording studio. In addition to School of Music students, the facility also serves the larger Wisconsin community, hosting nearly 350 public performances each year. Photo by Bryce Richter, University Communications.
Irving and Dorothy Levy Hall Rendering
After decades of leaking water and befuddling first-year students, the infamous Humanities Building will be replaced by a new College of Letters & Science building. Irving and Dorothy Levy Hall will house many of the majors currently taught in the aging facility. Situated across from the Wisconsin School of Business, the new building will create more than 23,000 square feet of space for the humanities, giving the college the ability to consolidate programs from seven campus locations into one home base. Construction is set to begin this year. Rendering courtesy of Flad Architects.
Bakke Recreation and Wellbeing Center
The Bakke Recreation and Wellbeing Center opened in April 2023, replacing the Natatorium built in 1963. Located alongside the Lakeshore Nature Preserve, the center includes 29,000 square feet of fitness space with traditional gym equipment and a rock-climbing wall, as well as an eight-lane pool and the Sub-Zero Ice Arena. Other special features include sport simulators, the Wolf Teaching Kitchen, and nap pods. Bakke is the third project in RecWell’s master plan to update the UW’s recreational facilities, following the completion of the Nicholas Recreation Center in 2018. Photo by Althea Dotzour, University Communications.
Computer, Data & Information Sciences Building Rendering
UW–Madison’s newest school is already establishing itself as a leader in computer and data science in higher education. The School of Computer, Data & Information Sciences (CDIS) broke ground on a 350,000-square-foot facility in April 2023. When it is completed, the building will house CDIS — which includes the Information School and the departments of Computer Sciences and Statistics — the UW School of Medicine and Public Health’s Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, the American Family Insurance Data Science Institute, the N+1 Institute, and the Center for High Throughput Computing. It is slated to open in 2025. Until then, watch the construction site’s livestream and take a peek inside with a virtual tour. Rendering courtesy of the School of Computer, Data & Information Sciences.
Babcock Hall and Center for Dairy Research Expansion
Construction on Babcock Dairy Hall began in 2020, and the building officially reopened in April 2023. The complete renovation of the dairy plant was its first major upgrade since being built in 1951. The Center for Dairy Research’s expansion added a three-story addition, providing space for 10 “cheese caves” and a food-grade pilot facility. UW–Madison students and outside industry professionals utilize these state-of-the-art facilities as they continue to innovate the dairy industry in the state of Wisconsin and beyond. Photo by Michael P. King/UW–Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences.
