What’s New, Geneva?
Kiera Foster- Staff Reporter
As the 2026-2027 school year begins, Geneva College students are returning to a vastly different campus with changes and renovations both seen and unseen.
Most notably, the Brigadoon has undergone major renovations and the Dwight E. Wagner Welcome Center has continued steady construction. However, Rapp Technical Design Center also underwent construction after a fire on the ground floor last semester, and Physical Plant has been hard at work across campus all summer long.
Geneva College- Flickr
THE BRIGADOON
What students were most apt to notice about Geneva this Fall is the newly renovated Brig with both a more open design and new menu options.
According to Jim Nescot, the food services director at Geneva College, updates to the Brig have been “a long time coming.” These updates have made both the work experience at the Brig and the student/customer experience easier and more enjoyable all around.
Nescot began working for Geneva College in 2007, originally starting out at the Brig. He claimed that the Brig had not been updated since before he began working for Geneva almost 20 years ago. When Pioneer, the exclusive food service provider for Geneva College, brought a plan to upgrade the Brig years ago, Nescot was excited. Nescot claimed to be especially excited for the new hood system in the Brig, though “It seems like a small detail.” Despite seeming like a minor change, the previous hood space made work exceptionally difficult for the Brig staff. It was too low, easy to hit one’s head off of and a tight space. The new system has more height to it and provides for a better work space for everyone.
It’s not just employees that are enjoying the new look of the Brig either. According to Nescot, “It creates a sense of pride [for students].” The goal for the Brig is to create a space that students and staff alike are proud to have as part of the college, a place where students would enjoy bringing their friends and family for a meal.
Part of the changes in the Brig this year also include an improved and expanded menu. Nescot especially highlighted the increase in gluten free items now offered at the Brig in addition to personal pizzas and specialty burgers. These new items aren’t the end either. “We’re looking to continue evolving menu items as well,” Nescot added.
The Brig is continuing to pursue ways in which they may “fold in more options” and rotate specialty items so that students never get bored. “We want to keep things fresh so it’s not stagnant,” Nescot said. The work done in the Brig isn’t ending with the summer. Digital signage and lighting are still to be installed this year. Eventually, the hope is that the current hanging signs will be replaced by digital menu boards that can be changed to display specialty items.
The changes seen now are only phase one of a multi-stage project involving both the Brig and Riverview Cafe over the next few years. Despite being positive changes, the many changes occurring at the Brig could be challenging for anyone, students or staff, to adjust to. Nescot expressed pride in the work the team at the Brig has been doing, especially regarding many new changes in workspace, protocol and menu options. “The team has done really well. It took time for them to adapt as well,” Nescot said, complimenting the flexibility of the Brig team as they embrace change this new school year.
PHYSICAL PLANT WORK
Outside the major renovations Geneva’s campus community is most likely to notice, Geneva’s Physical Plant spent the summer making behind-the-scenes repairs and updates around campus. Mark Petley, the director of physical plant at Geneva College, expressed pride at all the work accomplished over the course of the summer. “It’s not me that does the work,” he said, “we’re blessed to have a lot of talent and hard workers on our team.”
Between the conclusion of the Spring 2026 semester and the start of the Fall 2026 semester, Physical Plant did the following: renovated the bathrooms in the top floor of Pearce Hall, replaced 50% of the windows in Pearce Hall, installed air conditioning in Geneva’s music building, installed flooring in the Student Center, installed carpet in Young Hall,worked on the hardware for door access technology across campus, worked on the fire alarms in Memorial Hall and patched, painted and touched up walls across campus, including stairwells, apartments and doors in both Young and Arms, study carrels in McCartney Library and various faculty offices.
For reference, all the aforementioned projects were completed over the course of 10 weeks.
Petley concluded the interview by remarking, “I’m very proud of the work they [Physical Plant] did this summer.” Even as he spoke, Physical Plant was surveying and working across campus on the morning of Friday, Sept. 4 after severe thunderstorms brought down large branches across campus the night before.
RAPP TECHNICAL DESIGN CENTER
Near Midnight on April 6, 2026, a fire broke out in Rapp Technical Design Center. The fire was quickly contained and no major injuries were reported; however, heavy smoke and fire damage required major construction efforts to restore the building.
Geneva College’s own Physical Plant oversaw and managed Rapp’s construction, and Petley commented on the work done over the course of the summer.
Work was shared between Physical Plant and an outside contractor. According to Petley, a contractor was hired to strip the ground floor of Rapp down to its studs to remove all damage. Drywall, painting, flooring, plumbing and electrical work all had to be redone. Among other things, Physical Plant completed the electrical work in Rapp.
