Facilities

Visitors often comment that the grounds of our 162 acre campus are a beautiful, pleasant, and safe environment for a quality educational experience.  Although the present facilities on campus are modern and spacious, we still retain one building from our past.  Speer Chapel, restored from the World War II army hospital era, has received a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark designation.

The S. E. Belcher Jr. Chapel and Performance Center was dedicated in April 2007.  The Belcher Center was designed by professionals in architecture and theater, including one of the finest acoustical firms in the nation.  The 73,341-square-foot facility seats 2,000, with 1,400 seats on the expansive ground level and another 600 in the two opera-house style balconies. Built for maximum flexibility, the center features a 5,400 square-foot, fully working stage with an orchestra lift; a grand lobby with refreshment and exhibit areas; dressing rooms, a maintenance scene shop, as well as three soundproofed practice rooms, three classrooms, a multipurpose room, offices and more.  In addition to a wide variety of programming we present through our chapel and community an dcommunity series, the Longview Ballet, East Texas Opera, Longview Symphony, and the East Texas Symphonic Band have scheduled their seasons in the Belcher Center.  Most importantly, the Belcher Center serves as the university's central location for worship where chapel services are held at least three times a week during the academic year.

 

The Paul E. Glaske Center for Engineering, Science and Technology is a 53,000 square foot facility with state-of-the-art labs and classrooms for the engineering and science programs.  The engineering and science laboratories in the Glaske Center serve the wide variety of subjects taught in engineering, engineering technology, design technology, biology, chemistry, and physics.  The laboratories house equipment for experimental learning and design experiences.  Other features of the Glaske Center include a display area for students’ designs, an auditorium for presentations, ample classroom space, faculty offices, and a conference room.

Specific engineering laboratory areas in the Glaske Center include biomedical, computer, electrical, and mechanical in addition to graphics and design.  The biomedical engineering laboratory has specialized equipment for quantifying and measuring human motion and forces, computational modeling, and biomedical signal processing.  Electrical laboratories incorporate instrumentation, electronics, electrical machinery, microprocessors, microcontrollers, programmable logic controllers, lasers, and equipment for studying mechatronics.  Mechanical laboratories contain experimental apparatus for studying solid and fluid mechanics, thermodynamics and heat transfer, stress analysis and vibration analysis.  A robotics laboratory incorporates numerous robots in addition to automated manufacturing cells and robotic teaching aids.  An engineering computer laboratory is equipped with state-of-the-art computers and advanced engineering analysis and design software.  A computer aided design (CAD) laboratory in the Glaske Center provides opportunities for computerized graphics instruction and experience that incorporates solids modeling and advanced graphics capabilities.

Our natural science students become proficient with contemporary instrumentation in the laboratory facilities in the Glaske Center.  These labs are used for both formal course instruction and for undergraduate student research problems.  Through hands on experience students become acquainted with the use and operation of such computer interfaced instrumentation as UV-VIS, FTIR spectrophotometers, NMR spectrometer, and gas chromatograph equipment.

Adjacent engineering laboratory buildings house materials joining laboratories and a machine-tool and design laboratory.  Welding and materials joining laboratories include equipment for materials testing, non-destructive evaluation of materials, a scanning electron microscope, a Gleeble dynamic simulation and test device, and more than twenty methods of welding and materials joining.  The machine tool and design laboratory provides a full array of machining equipment, including lathes, mills, drill presses and saws.

Students majoring in business administration, computer science and mathematics use classrooms in Longview Hall.  Also included in Longview Hall are five computer laboratories with more than 130 personal computers linked to the campus network and the Internet. There are also special purpose computer laboratories to serve students in Engineering, Natural Sciences, Engineering Technology, Aeronautical Science, and Education in their respective facilities.  Some computer labs provide access to both Apple- and Windows-based machines.

Heath Hardwick Hall houses faculty offices and classrooms for the areas of Biblical studies, Christian Ministry, English, and History and Political Science. A large central lecture hall and a student lounge area afford students a superb learning center.  Classrooms have internet connections and other audio-visual equipment to enhance learning.

The Margaret Estes Library is a modern, attractive facility designed to serve the undergraduate and graduate population of the University.  It houses a collection of over 96,000 titles, a collection of  390 current journal subscriptions, and the archives of R.G. LeTourneau.  The library is a partial depository for federal documents.  The library also provides a gateway to one of the largest bibliographic databases on earth.  This database, FirstSearch, allows worldwide access to collections listed in over 35,000 library catalogs.  The Margaret Estes Library’s own automated catalog can be searched in the library and on the World Wide Web.  Access to over 25,000 electronic journals and more than 51,450 electronic books is available to researchers both on and off campus through the Web.  The library is a member of the Forest Trail Library Consortium and TexShare, giving LeTourneau students, faculty, and staff reciprocal borrowing privileges at all academic and public libraries in the state of Texas.

The Education Center, housing the areas of teacher education and psychology, offers students a facility specifically designed to support experiential study in those areas. The center includes a full multi-media production room, a comprehensive curriculum library for research and professional development, and a video conferencing classroom with two-way interactive capabilities for instructional delivery at remote sites. Students will have the opportunity to observe and instruct young children in the kindergarten through sixth grade laboratory classroom which includes an attached observation and screening room.

The Center for Aviation Studies is a 55,500 square foot building facility conveniently located at the East Texas Regional Airport.  The building's state-of-the art classrooms and labs serve the various educational programs offered by the school of aeronautical science.  At the heart of this building is the flight training area where flight students have access to the school's fleet of sophisticated flight training aircraft.  In addition to the classrooms, laboratories, and flight operations area, the center includes the 3,400 square foot Grand Hall complete with a full size Cessna 140 aircraft suspended from the ceiling.  Other features of the center include a conference suite, student lounge, technical library, and the school's faculty and administration offices.

The center's nine purpose-built laboratories were designed to support the highly specialized laboratory courses taught by the school.  The technical labs used by the Applied Aviation Sciences Department are located in a 14,118 square foot contiguous area.  All of these labs have easy access via walk-through and overhead doors to the static aircraft systems training aircraft and Marty Donner Engine Test Facility located at the east end of the building.  The Marty Donner Engine Test Facility is a state-of-the-art engine test facility that comprises a fully enclosed Turbine Engine Test Cell with adjacent Control Room, an Equipment Storage Room, and three open air Engine Test Cells.  The Flight Simulations Laboratory houses the school’s DA-42 Twin Star Flight Simulator, Cessna 172 Skyhawk Mentor Flight Simulator, and four Personal Computer Aviation Training Devices (PCATDs).  Within the next few years the ATC Radar Laboratory and ATC Control Tower Laboratory will be equipped with sophisticated simulators designed to support the new Air Traffic Control program.

The Solheim Recreation and Activity Center accommodates kinesiology, intercollegiate athletics, intramurals, and recreational activities.  In addition to modern classrooms, the 75,000 square foot facility contains a swimming pool, racquetball courts, weight rooms, aerobics/martial arts room, two gymnasia, a walking/running track, and lounge areas.  A kinesiology lab houses equipment to assess physiological changes during physical activity. The lab also has four computers for research and in-class laboratory experieces. 

The R.G. LeTourneau Memorial and Student Center houses important student services, administrative offices, the R.G. LeTourneau museum, and a multi media theater.  The first floor includes plenty of space to hang out with friends, grab a bite to eat for lunch or a late-night snack, or get the latest LeTourneau University fashions in the bookstore.  The Hive provides sandwiches, soft drinks, ice cream, and other food items at times when students want them most.  Common Grounds is a full-service coffeehouse and student artwork showcase.  The bookstore offers textbooks, stationery, and the latest logo wear.