From the Ground Up: Saint Anselm College, Grappone Hall

When Saint Anselm nursing students arrive for their first day of class, they now enter spaces that mirror where they’ll spend their future careers

Eckman Construction recently completed Grappone Hall, home to the Jean School of Nursing and Health Sciences, the school’s largest capital project to date. The new 45,000-square-foot building contains seven simulation labs that replicate various hospital wards and a home-health setting.

“It’s really amazing to see the future of nursing education and what they can do with these simulation spaces in real time,” said Matt Walsh, project manager for Eckman.

A foundation of planning and preparation

Before construction could begin, Eckman had to prepare the site of Poisson Hall, a 1970s-era computer hub located at the front of campus.

“When you come in their entrance, you are looking at this building,” said John Deloia, Eckman Construction vice president. “It’s making a statement.”

As part of the demolition process, all equipment operating out of the building had to be relocated. Eckman helped manage the relocation of computer servers and the server center to another building, while staff offices were moved elsewhere. Even the water, sewer and electrical utilities had to be rerouted to accommodate the larger footprint.

“We spent about eight months in enabling work and pre-construction planning for the building and demolition,” Walsh said. “We really got started there in June of 2023, and it took us into January/February for demolition and to prep for a nice, clean pad where all the utilities were moved while the design was going on for the new nursing building.”

The campus continued its typical school schedule, so Eckman took care in planning to limit major disruptions to students.

“We can’t build an 18-month-long project without avoiding being on campus while they’re in class. But we can do major activities such as flying rooftop units with a crane on days when the students are off,” Walsh said. “I think part of our longstanding relationship with the college has been reinforced by our constant commitment to the safety of the students and the faculty on campus.”

“When it comes down to it, we are very fortunate to have been part of a partnership team with the college,” said Deloia.

“Without everybody working together, the project isn’t a success.”

Consultants that partnered on the build include Lavallee Brensinger Architects, Foley Buhl Roberts & Associates, and TFMoran. Trade subcontractors included Mas-Con Corp, Metro Walls, Hampshire Fire Protection Co., Eckhardt & Johnson, Longchamps Electric, F.L. Merrill Construction Inc., Pro AV Systems, Stanley Elevator Company, Redimix Companies, Structure SBL, WS Dennison Cabinets and Classic Exterior. All of the on-site efforts of these subcontractors were skillfully managed by Eckman’s on-site team, led by site superintendent Julianne Cardinal.

A school designed for today and beyond

Poisson Hall was torn down instead of renovated, not only to allow systems to meet modern standards but to address the college’s future needs. The showcase of the facility is the 11,000-square-foot Sheila Evjy Center for Health Sciences Simulation with seven specialized labs. These simulation labs mirror real hospital settings, from ICU to pediatrics to home health, complete with a nurses’ station.

“Other than two elements, every single thing in this hospital space was constructed to health care standards to give the most realistic experience for the future nursing students that the college possibly could,” Walsh said.

The building also has communal lounges and study areas for students, faculty offices on the top level and an auditorium.

“The building doesn’t just meet the needs of today’s students, but it’s built for years into the future,” said Jonathan Woodcock, Saint Anselm’s assistant vice president of facilities, who served as a primary go-between for the college and the construction team.

The 150-seat auditorium serves both student lectures and continuing education for active nurses, offered in person or virtually nationwide.

Nursing and health-related majors make up 27% of Saint Anselm’s student body, the largest nursing class ever. The school expects demand for this kind of training only to grow.

While Eckman has a long history in academic construction, in the last five years, it has started doing more health care environments.

“A lot of times in academia, you used to do enough for it to look like what you wanted,” Deloia said. “Well, this is what you really see in the real world. They truly brought the real world into a teaching environment. It was just amazing to watch a team that does a great deal of hospital and medical design put it into a learning facility. It allows the hospitals in this area to know that the students coming out are seeing the real world. It makes them more valuable to these hospitals on day one.”

A team effort to address challenges and logistics

The timeline for the Jean School of Nursing and Health Sciences stayed on track through extensive planning and cooperation between Saint Anselm, Eckman and the subcontractors.

While demolition was ongoing, designers worked on the concepts for the building. This pre-planning allowed Eckman to order materials with long lead times earlier, so they’d arrive when they were needed.

“Our job is to think ahead, schedule and be ahead of the problems so they don’t become problems,” Deloia said. “Everybody in the team would say it was a pretty smooth process. It doesn’t mean we didn’t have challenges, but we stayed ahead of them.”

Woodcock had regular check-ins with Eckman’s team while meeting periodically with the college’s board and senior leadership to ensure the new building met the school’s needs and fit in with the existing campus aesthetic.

“It truly was a team effort,” Woodcock said. “We appreciate having the team we have.”

Whether it was scheduling work around students’ finals week or making sure medical equipment was imported on time, Eckman, its subcontractors, the design team led by Lavallee Brensinger Architects, and the college focused on working together to smooth any disruptions.