By Katie Mayer, Special to East Valley Tribune
A crowd of more than 250 gathered in downtown Mesa Tuesday for a blessing and ribbon-cutting in the building that was once Mesa’s Southside Hospital and is now home to Arizona’s first Catholic university.
The 44,000 square-foot contemporary renovated space, located at 225 E. Main Street, is the primary academic building for Benedictine University at Mesa and includes nine classrooms, a nutrition lab, computer lab, a chapel and faculty and administrative offices, along with empty space to grow.
On Sept. 3, students will step foot on campus and be the first to experience a learning style that university officials call “lecture-free classes.” University officials would not release the number of students starting classes, but said the number is changing, as enrollment is ongoing.
