Just over the past year, Simpson picked up a newly renovated dining hall, a new student center, and an outstanding school to get an education. What more could Simpson want?

The answer to this question would be a new fitness center and much more for the Simpson community.

Simpson has recently begun the renovation for the new fitness and training facility that is being placed where the pool is located. The extensive six million dollar project is on pace to be ready to go by sometime in December of 2013.

If everything goes according to plan, this is only another great addition to the already beautiful Simpson campus.

The second level of Cowles has already been cleaned out where the trophies and Simpson Hall of Fame awards were located in the main hall. To continue, all of the coaches that used to reside in the lower level of Cowles have all packed their bags and moved to new locations to make room for this extraordinary facility.

This project is going to benefit Simpson in many different ways. Not only is it going to benefit the student athletes who are trying to improve their game and performance, but it is also going to provide unique opportunities to students who are involved with the Athletic Training program here at Simpson as it will give them more hands on experience with the addition of an athletic training lab as well as a rehabilitation and therapy pool.

Several Simpson students believe that this is going to be beneficial to the college and students in various ways. Sophomore baseball player, Nick Anderson, believes that a larger and more complex facility will inspire more people to want to lift and get healthy.

“I think it will benefit the student athletes that are looking to get bigger and stronger for the sport that they play,” Anderson said. “It also is going to allow for students who are scared or intimidated by all of the athletes, to go upstairs to use the cardio machines where they are out of the way and do not feel as embarrassed or scared.”

Sophomore volleyball player, Kira Klepel, believes that the more room the better.

“I think that the biggest advantage for the new facility is going to be the space,” Klepel said. “Right now in the current weight room there is not enough room for more than one team to be working out which causes conflicts with time management. The disadvantage of this facility is going to be that now that there is no pool, people are going to have to go to the YMCA.”

Several other Simpson students looked at it as being advantageous from the viewpoint of people outside of the Simpson community looking in.

Junior Nate Jones believes it just adds to the already outstanding reputation that Simpson has and will lure even more people to come to Simpson.

“It will create a better chance for students to work out by providing a larger and updated facility, and it will also add to what Simpson has to offer for prospective students,” Jones said.

Kenzie Seaton is excited for the new opportunities that it will bring to the Simpson campus.

“I’m looking forward to the new center because it will bring a whole new atmosphere and attitude to the facility,” Seaton, women’s soccer freshman, said. “I think it will motivate more athletes and non-athletes to work out and improve their physical health.”

While it is going to be a little while before the facility opens, students are already chomping at the bit to start taking advantage of it. The good news is that it will be up and running before we know it and will hopefully be even more astonishing than originally hyped up to be.

One thing is clear, which is that Simpson just keeps adding on to an already magnificent campus, always trying to find ways to improve it.