Write your paper while sipping a mocha at a cozy café table, basking in the sunlight pouring through a wall of windows. Or rock out with your band on a brand-new stage, including state-of-the-art sound and lighting systems.

Wander outside through the open overhead doors and savor a panini sandwich or a plate of nachos on the open-air terrace. Or pick up a bottle of shampoo, a pint of Ben & Jerry's, or a box of organic mac-and-cheese at the mini-convenience store.

Share a dinner with your entire house. Or dance till you drop on the sprung dance floor.

It's coming--the new Bennington College student center.

Slated to open at the end of this month, Bennington's new 10,000-square-foot student center is a lofty haven of cedar and glass, with a ceiling that swoops up to thirty feet at its highest point. Sunlight fills the space by day, and sleek pendant lights illuminate it by night. A set of huge, upward-acting overhead doors raise and lower to open the room up to the sweeping terrace outside. With an upholstered enclave for studying and conversation, and a wide-open performance space for events ranging from rock concerts to poetry readings, open-mike nights to dance parties, there isn't much that the new building isn't equipped to do. The facilities even include a backstage green room for bands.

Then there's the food. The campus snack bar, café, and pub are merging into one space with a state-of-the-art kitchen and ample seating. Along with classic Bennington favorites (the universally beloved nachos, smoothies, and wraps), the menu includes new gourmet sandwiches and salads made with local ingredients. Think smoked ham and turkey, cheddar cheese, and apple-dijon chutney on sourdough, served with Vermont-made potato chips. Or a spinach-and-strawberry salad. Or fresh pizza (with locally produced dough) from the brand-new pizza oven.

"Students showed a lot of interest in organic and locally grown stuff, so we wanted that to be our focus," says Beth Carlson, Director of Dining Services. That focus extends to the student center's mini-convenience store, which will carry not only toiletries, snacks, and other sundries, but also ingredients for cooking and pre-packaged organic foods from companies like Annie's Homegrown and Amy's. And speaking of locally grown, take a good look at the furniture: mixed in with the funky chairs and slick café tables, you'll find side tables handmade by a local craftsman--hewn, of course, from Vermont sugar maple.

Ideas from students, faculty, and staff were key in the planning of the new building. Joan Goodrich, Vice President for Planning and Special Programs, welcomed input on everything from the acoustics to the upholstery. "CAB [Campus Activities Board] helped us with the design and gave us suggestions about acoustics. We have a big, fancy sound system designed by Jake Meginsky MFA '07, and a stage lighting system designed by [faculty member] Michael Gianitti.

"Behind the sound and light booth, you walk into this very cozy lounge with wacky furniture. When you see this thing, you just want to get in it--it's like a cocoon, a big semicircular partition. We had students help pick out the furniture and fabrics, and Eva [Chatterjee-Sutton, Acting Dean of Students] actually went to Schenectady to sit on it to make sure it passed the 'sit test.'"

Staff, faculty, and students alike are more than ready to put the building to use. Humair Madhani '06, Program Coordinator for the Student Center and Recreation Facilities, says that he is already receiving requests to use the space. "Legal Aliens [the international students' group] is hoping to do their yearly Multicultural Show there. A couple of students have come in to ask about dance pieces and a possible fashion show in November. [Faculty member] Sue Rees has asked about having her Animation and Puppets class present their work there at the end of the term.

"It's a very versatile, multipurpose space. You can move the furniture around easily; everything's on wheels; the light and sound systems are very functional and modular. A lot can be done with it."

Chatterjee-Sutton anticipates that the building's flexibility and openness to all members of the College--students, faculty, and staff--will add a new layer of connections to the community. "A faculty member can have coffee with their advising group in a comfortable, aesthetically pleasing place. People have a new common space to collaborate across the disciplines.

"And I think it also opens up new ways the communities on and off campus might interact. We're in this season of politics, for example, and this could be a venue to host a political debate. Speakers, interactive programs.... Everyone is eagerly anticipating the opening."

The countdown ends in just about two weeks. Prepare for takeoff.

More:

• Living at Bennington
• Food at Bennington
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• Applying to Bennington

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