Clark Atlanta Breaks Ground On First New Building In 20 Years

University President George French Jr. said, 'We are ready to go.'

Nearly three years ago, the Board of Trustees of Clark Atlanta University (CAU) announced that the institution would construct three new campus facilities, including a new student success center. WSB-TV recently reported that construction on the student center has officially started. It’s the first new construction in 20 years.

The school announced that the groundbreaking ceremony was taking place May 15, and according to University President George French Jr., “We are ready to go.” When the announcement took place in October 2023, the school stated that the new center would help streamline resources and programs to support the success of the attending students.

Join us as we break ground on the future of excellence at Clark Atlanta University! 🏗️✨

📍 Clark Atlanta University Student Success Center
📅 Thursday, May 15, 2025
🕑 2:00 PM
📌 SNCC Way

#CAUForward #ClarkAtlantaUniversity #GroundbreakingCeremony pic.twitter.com/5dPfwl3Xmp

— Clark Atlanta Univ. (@CAU) May 14, 2025

The planned center will be available to house school advisors and tutors, and will have programs that will help students with their study methods and show them skills to navigate campus life. French hopes it will help to balance the quantity and quality for students. The excitement for the construction of the center adds to the fact that it’s been over two decades since something was built on the Clark Atlanta University campus.

“It’s been over 20 years since we had construction on the campus. We’re super, super excited,” French said.

The cost of the project is $12 million and is expected to be completed in time for the students to utilize it by the fall of 2026.

With the new building and the school’s reputation, French mentioned that there were 48,000 applicants for the 1,200 spots available this year.

“Those 48,000 students had an average—those admitted—GPA of 3.71. Hence, we had to have student services like this for them,” French said. It’s a record number of applications.

Clark Atlanta University, a private, historically Black university in Atlanta, was established in 1988 when two separate institutions, Clark College and Atlanta University, merged into CAU. Students who attend the school work toward obtaining undergraduate, graduate, and/or professional degrees.