Radford University to Officially Open $44 Million Home for College of Business and Economics

Radford University on Sept. 12 will officially open the new home for its nationally accredited College of Business and Economics (COBE), a $44 million, state-of-the-art complex featuring the latest in educational technology.

Wednesday's ribbon-cutting ceremony will be hosted by President Penelope W. Kyle and the Radford University Board of Visitors in front of the new building at the corner of Jefferson Street and Tyler Avenue overlooking the campus, the City of Radford and the Blue Ridge Mountains. The 4 p.m. ceremony will be followed by an open house and reception until 6 p.m.

Featured speaker will be Jim Cheng, Secretary of Commerce and Trade for the Commonwealth of Virginia. Appointed in 2010, he oversees 13 state agencies, including the departments of Housing and Community Development, Labor and Industry, the Board of Accountancy and the Virginia Employment Commission. His office is the key agency for workforce development and management of the Commonwealth's jobs and opportunity agenda.

Also speaking will be Delegate Joseph Yost, who is in his first term representing the 12th District in the Virginia House of Delegates. He currently serves on the House's Education and Health, Welfare, and Institutions committees.  Yost holds bachelor's and master's degrees in criminal justice from Radford University.

The new COBE building, which opened for classes in August, is the academic home of the university's 1,500 business majors. It was designed to stimulate collaboration and teamwork not only in its classrooms but also in its conference rooms and meeting spaces. It features the latest in financial research capabilities, including a trading room that simulates an actual financial operations center.

In keeping with Radford University's commitment to sustainability, the complex meets criteria for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver designation by the U.S. Green Building Council.

Further, the building is a hub for the university's outreach to the Roanoke Valley and New River Valley business communities and beyond. It is headquarters for the Small Business Development Center, which offers business planning, loan packaging and marketing, financing and financial analysis for companies across the Commonwealth. It is also headquarters for the Governmental and Nonprofit Assistance Center, which provides training, information, research and technical assistance for Virginia's local governments.