ORANGEBURG, S.C. — South Carolina State University is showing off major renovations at two student buildings.
"It was intuitively obvious to the casual observer that we needed to do something," said SC State University President James E. Clark. "You walk in here, and you're like this needs to be replaced."
The Kirkland W. Green Student Center, also known as "The Pitt," by students, is the hub for campus life. It used to be dark and uninviting, according to students, but now has a different look that includes four new restaurants.
"Now it looks more state of the art," said SC State Student Paul Martin. "It's a whole lot more space and more food options. Also, the new technology equipment where you can swipe your debit card or credit, that we didn't have before."
The inside of the dining hall at the university was also transformed, making it more open and adding more food options. Members of the student government association say students love the new changes after years of requests for change.
"We're representing SGA for this academic school year," said SC State Student Jaavonni Ayers. "Some requests came before us. It's amazing to know that we were the first to see this happen."
Clark says this is phase one of remodeling. There are discussions about transforming the outside of the student center, and developing a new game room area. These improvements will allow students to stay closer to campus.
"We are working with the administration to get The Pitt open on the weekends hopefully, so we don't have to go home every weekend for a good meal," explained Ayers.