Encyclopedia Trinitiana

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====== Borges Admissions Center ======

The Manuel and Maria Luisa Lopes Borges Admissions Center is located next to [[chapel|Trinity College Chapel]] and overlooks the [[athletics|athletics]] fields. The building includes the Career Services Center, where students may seek resources regarding future employment opportunities that align with their passions and skills. In addition, the building houses Financial Aid offices where students and their families may arrange need and merit based aid plans to facilitate their education at Trinity. While it may appear small due to its structure closely hugging the topography of the landscape, the Borges Admissions Center contains three floors. The top floor is a transparent pavilion of timber, steel, and glass. A limestone colonnade supporting a timber trellis along the length of the upper level recalls the Gothic buttresses of the Chapel nearby. 

[{{ :admissions_building.jpg?450|Borges Admissions Center, ca. 2001. Photo credit: Bohlin Cywinski Jackson}}]

The Borges Admissions Center was part of the “Trinity Campus Master Plan,” commissioned by President [[dobelle_evan_s|Evan Dobelle]] in 1997, the goal of which was to bring about new ambitions for the College that complemented its historical architecture while supporting its modernized learning initiatives and strengthening student communities. Construction of the building was part of the first phase of President Dobelle’s Master Plan, consisting of three waves of construction planned for 2002, 2010, and 2020. Project 2002 included several enterprises, such as renovating the [[library|library]], expanding [[austin_arts_center|Austin Arts Center]], constructing a new dormitory and a studio arts facility, and dramatically revising the landscaping and pathways throughout campus. 

On March 12, 1999 a meeting of the [[trustees|Board of Trustees]] heard a report from trustee Dan Raether on plans to construct a new admissions building along the Chapel quad, which would become the location of the Admissions, Financial Aid, and Career Services offices as well as conference spaces for faculty and students. The building was to be designed by Philadelphia architect Peter Bohlin of the Bohlin Cywinski Jackson Architectural firm. The proposal to approve the construction was unanimously passed by the board during this meeting. Facilitated by an anonymous donation of $10 million dollars, construction began in Summer 1999, and was proposed to be completed by Spring 2001.

Officially opened in 2001 at a ribbon cutting ceremony on September 28, the building comprises 30,000 square feet and was completed with a total cost of $15 million. Peter Bohlin, the architect leading the design project, stated that, "Working closely with the College, we were able to carefully place this large and powerful building in the shadow of the great Trinity Chapel. We are pleased with the way the building sits in the landscape, forming a soft edge for the Chapel Quadrangle while meeting the College's programmatic goals." Bohlin Cywinski Jackson was awarded the 2004 Tucker Design Award by the Building Stone Institute for their work on the building. The Tucker Design Award honors architectural design that demonstrates excellence in the use of natural stone in building or landscape projects.   

In April of 2023, the building was named the Manuel and Maria Luisa Lopes Borges Admissions Center, after the parents of Francisco L. “Frank” Borges ’74, H’20, Peter L. Borges ’80, Francesca Borges Gordon ’82, Maria Borges Correia ’85, and Joaquina Borges King. The siblings also donated $10 million to establish a financial aid endowment. The family made the gift in honor of their parents, who had emigrated from Cape Verde and had impressed upon them the value of education.

===== Sources =====

[[https://www.trincoll.edu/admissions/|Admissions & Aid at Trinity College]]

[[https://www.bcj.com/projects/academic/trinity-college-admissions-building/|Bohlin Cywinski Jackson: Trinity College, Admissions Building]]  

[[https://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/reporter/444|The Trinity Reporter]], Fall 2023.

[[https://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/reporter/353|The Trinity Reporter]], Fall 2004.  

[[https://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/tripod/400|Trinity Tripod]], 2002-02-26.  

[[http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/reporter/390|The Trinity Reporter]], Winter 2001.  

[[http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/tripod/368|Trinity Tripod]], 2001-09-11.  

[[http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/tripod/338|Trinity Tripod]], 2000-09-12.  

[[http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/w_books/2|Trinity College in the Twentieth Century: A History]] (2000), Peter and Anne Knapp, p. 508. 

[[http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/tripod/316|Trinity Tripod]], 1999-03-16. 

[[http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/bulletin/411|Trinity College Bulletin (Annual Report)]], 1997-1998. 
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