Local officials, UCA Board of Trustees members and President Tom Courtway met to assist in the groundbreaking ceremony at the HPER Center on Tuesday morning.

Of the seven board of trustees members, six were present, excluding Brad Lacey who was out of state on business.

Arkansas officials including Gov. Mike Beebe and Sen. Jason Rapert were also in attendance.

Courtway said the expansion was an improvement showing how far the university has come since he became president.

SGA President Adam Price said the expansion promoted fitness and would help incoming students “avoid the dreaded freshman 15.”

The expansion will add more than 42,000 square feet of space, featuring 14,000 square feet of renovated space. The HPER Center expansion includes the addition of a 25-yard, six-lane swimming pool.

Board of trustees chair Victor Green said, “The students spoke, the board listened,” of the expansion.

Mann Architect’s lead architect for the project, Randy Stocks, said he was proud to be a part of this improvement to the university and that he thinks it will be a great facility for the UCA community.

“[The HPER Center] is more than the sum of its parts,” he said to a crowd of about 50.