The university has begun construction on another part of the campus for 300 million

Ústí nad Labem - The Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem (UJEP) today began the construction of another part of the campus for 300 million crowns. It will house a central university library for 250,000 books, two large lecture halls, and the rectorate. The construction of the new Multifunctional and Educational Center is expected to be completed by July 2012.
    "I hope we will meet here for the completion in about a year and a quarter," said Rector René Wokoun during the ceremonial toast. The former rector and now head of the Czech Statistical Office, Iva Ritschelova, called the new complex "the heart of the university." "I hope our library will be the best in the region," she added. Along with university staff, representatives from the city of Ústí nad Labem, the Ústí region, and the Ministry of Education participated in the symbolic laying of the foundation stone.
    The new buildings will also house the Center for Lifelong Learning and the Center for Informatics. It is planned to include two large lecture halls for 315 and 190 people. The library will manage 250,000 volumes and offer 110 study places for students. "A significant change will also be the large open shelves, but especially the accessibility of the University Library to the public, which was not possible under the current conditions of the university," added university spokesperson Jana Šiková.
    For paving the student square in front of the Multifunctional Center, the university will not use interlocking pavers, but classic cubes measuring ten by ten centimeters. Most of the funding for the new construction was provided by the Ministry of Education, with 292 million CZK, while the university contributed ten million.
    UJEP is the only university in the Ústí region, and it was opened on September 28, 1991. It currently consists of seven faculties: Faculty of Production Technologies and Management, Faculty of Science, Faculty of Philosophy, Faculty of Education, Faculty of Arts and Design, Faculty of Social and Economic Studies, Faculty of Environmental Studies, and the Institute of Health Studies. It has nearly 1,000 employees and 11,000 students.