New building at CEI officially gets a name

IDAHO FALLS – College of Eastern Idaho’s Future Tech Building, which is under construction on the north side of the Idaho Falls campus, officially has a name.

The new building will be called the Battelle Energy Alliance Future Tech Building through a partnership with Battelle Energy Alliance and Frontier Credit Union. Frontier Credit Union will hold the naming rights to a 4,087-square-foot conference space, which will be used for lectures and community meetings.

CEI made this announcement Thursday afternoon during an unveiling ceremony for the community. It comes after a $4.5 million donation from BEA, building on its initial $1 million donation for construction. Frontier Credit Union contributed $3.5 million to the project.

During Thursday’s unveiling, CEI President Lori Barber described this partnership as a “rare alignment of vision, timing and opportunity.”

“This remarkable building is really proof of what happens when we all come together in a common cause. It is the result of a partnership that will change lives for decades to come,” Barber said. “All of us at CEI are so excited to share in this partnership.”

CEI broke ground on the facility last August. The two-level building will house energy, innovation and technology-related courses, such as cybersecurity and mechatronics, as well as IT and STEM programs. In addition to classroom space and a conference center, the building will also have field testing laboratories and a large gathering area for business and civic events, student group projects and bay space.

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The total cost of the project is about $50 million. Of that amount, about $32 million is being funded by taxpayers. The rest of the money is coming from grants and donations from the private sector.

The building is slated for completion in the fall of 2026.

BEA, based in Columbus, Ohio, manages eight national laboratories, including Idaho National Laboratory. Juan Alvarez, executive vice president of Battelle’s laboratory operations, told Thursday’s crowd the motivation behind its donation stems back to the beginnings of the company in 1929.

Gordon Battelle, an industrialist who founded BEA, reserved in his will that his estate would become the home for a research institute.

“(BEA) wasn’t just about doing research to benefit society. At its core, it was also about education. When we came out here to Idaho, there was always the idea of that legacy investment and where we can have a big impact,” Alvarez explained.

The organization selected CEI as the place to “develop the workforce of the future,” and Alvarez is thrilled about it.

“This is an amazing community. You’re going to benefit tremendously from this opportunity to develop our future talent,” he says.

INL Director John Wagner concurs. During his remarks, he said the work INL is doing has never been more important and having a talented workforce is critical to the future success of the lab.

“Our nation is … facing historic challenges with energy and energy security,” Wagner said. “We must have talented people eager to make a difference in order for us to be successful. That’s exactly what the vision of the Future Tech Building is all about.”

Through this partnership, Frontier Credit Union will establish a STEM scholarship program for CEI students. Co-branded debit and credit cards with the school will directly fund the scholarship.

Credit union CEO Dan Thurman explained how it works during his remarks.

“Every time one of these cards is used, a portion of that purchase will go towards funding scholarships for those students,” Thurman said. “Together, we’re building better lives, we’re building better communities and we’re building a future for Idaho.”