Austen Hunzeker
News Editor
Pocatello, ID — Just west of the Idaho State University quad sits Leonard Hall, and after three years of renovations, the home of the L.S. Skaggs College of Pharmacy has officially completed construction.
To celebrate, a ribbon-cutting ceremony took place on Friday, September 19, bringing together approximately 100 people. The program consisted of four speakers, with the ribbon cutting facilitated by the Pocatello-Chubbuck Chamber of Commerce Trailblazers, current and former College of Pharmacy deans, ALSAM Foundation representatives, ISU President Robert Wagner, city officials, and other distinguished guests.
“Leonard Hall is not just labs and classrooms,” Dr. Tom Wadsworth, dean of the L.S. Skaggs College of Pharmacy, said. “It is a collaborative space of discovery, where chemists, biologists, physiologists, clinicians, pharmaceutic experts, and data scientists will stand shoulder to shoulder, sharing their unique perspectives and ideas.”
Leonard Hall has been a landmark on ISU’s campus since 1918, with this renovation process being the first to happen in over 30 years. The L.S. Skaggs Foundation donated $14 million to the cause, the biggest donation in ISU history, and not the first time they’ve given to ISU. In 2007, they gifted $5 million to launch the Meridian Health Science Center.
“Their generosity has changed where and how we teach and learn and discover,” Wadsworth said. “What began as a pharmacy presence in the valley has grown into a hub where every health discipline is trained.”
A variety of upgrades can be observed throughout Leonard Hall, including new laboratory facilities, a new common area, televisions, advanced classrooms, and more. Students were able to return to classes in Leonard Hall at the beginning of this fall semester.
“With this renovation, our 104-year tradition of pharmacy practice and research meets the remarkable legacy of the Skaggs family,” Wadsworth said. “Leonard Hall now stands as a gateway into a new era, a vessel for discovery, and the scientists and students who now and will walk these hallways are literally the lifeblood of that vessel and our potential.”
Taylor Looney, a P2 student, said while the updated classrooms and study spaces are modern and beautiful, they are also intentional.
“They give us an environment that makes learning more engaging, collaboration more natural, and yes, even studying at 11 p.m. a little more bearable,” Looney said.
Looney highlighted the impact these renovations have on pharmacy graduate students specifically.
“To them, these aren’t just shiny new rooms,” Looney said. “They’re [the] launch pads of their careers…It ensures that science being done here doesn’t just stay in the lab, it finds its way into our lives.”
Susie Balukoff, a member of the board of directors for the ALSAM Foundation and daughter of Sam Skaggs, along with President Wagner, provided additional insight and clarity into what this completed project means to ISU, the college’s legacy, and the future of pharmaceutical sciences.
“A real impact of this renovation will be seen in the lives and the professions and the careers of the students who will go through this building,” Wagner said. “This college will embrace its future; this institution is embracing its future.”
