College of Optometry unveils new academic home in J.C. Penney Building

College of Optometry unveils new academic home in J.C. Penney Building

by Steve Walentik | Aug 17, 2026

Dozens of alumni and supporters of the University of Missouri-St. Louis College of Optometry gathered Friday evening to get a peak at its new academic home in the J.C. Penney Building on North Campus.

"You are, in fact, the very first group to be welcomed into this beautifully reimagined building," Dean Keshia Elder said during brief remarks. "In the coming weeks our faculty and staff will begin moving into their new offices. Today gives you an early look at a space that will soon be filled with the daily activity of the College of Optometry."

The building features more than 30,000 square feet of renovated space, designed by architect Amy Luchun and her team at the Lamar Johnson Collaborative, including classrooms, teaching laboratories and collaborative study spaces to support student learning.

Importantly, it also brings students in the college closer to student services and amenities at the core of the UMSL campus as they depart the college's longtime home in Marillac Hall. That fact was not lost on alum Dr. Paul Luong, now a member of the UMSL Alumni Association Governing Board.

"I attended the College of Optometry from 2012 to 2016, when the college was located on UMSL's South Campus," he said. "I received an incredible education there and built relationships that continue to shape my career today. But if I'm being candid, as a student I never fully experienced the energy of being part of a larger university campus. We were UMSL students, of course, but geographically, we were somewhat removed from the heart of UMSL.

"That is why I think what we're celebrating today is about much more than a beautiful new academic space."

While optometry students will continue to undergo clinical training in the UMSL Patient Care Center on the south side of Natural Bridge Road, they should find more opportunities to build connections with the rest of the campus community.

"I think that matters for alumni, too," Luong said. "I've often said that the College of Optometry is a jewel in UMSL's crown. Our graduates practice throughout Missouri and across the country, and they carry the UMSL name with them throughout their careers. Bringing the college into the heart of the university strengthens that connection - not only for today's students, but for generations of alumni who can come back here and feel an even greater sense that this is our university and our campus."

Interim Chancellor Chris Spilling has witnessed a lot of changes in his 38 years at the university but none as dramatic as the ongoing Transform UMSL initiative, of which the newly renovated optometry space is a part.

The initiative is a multi-year effort to transform and modernize the campus to meet the needs of students now and in the future. Through $110 million in construction and renovation projects, UMSL is establishing a more cohesive academic core on North Campus while freeing up land for mixed-use redevelopment south of Natural Bridge Road.

"The university developed a strategic vision for transforming our campus and creating learning environments that support academic excellence, innovation and student success," Spilling said. "We identified projects that would have the greatest impact, and we were prepared when the opportunity to move those plans forward arrived."

That opportunity came when the state of Missouri directed $80 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding to the university over a three-year period to support the university's vision.

But as Spilling noted, the support of private donations has also been critical to bringing the Transform UMSL projects, including the College of Optometry's new academic space, to fruition.

He expressed gratitude for that support while directing attendees to a donor wall commemorating the philanthropic contributions of individuals and organizations, including Dr. Barb Brown, Drs. Keshia and Keith Elder, Dr. Mike and Pam Nichols, Clarkson Eyecare, the Missouri Optometric Foundation and VSP Vision.

"The building we are in today has an important place in UMSL history," he said Friday evening in the J.C. Penney Building. "It began its life in 1971 as the J.C. Penney Building - the first privately funded building on the UMSL campus. Its history reminds us that partnerships and philanthropy have long played an important role in helping our UMSL grow and fulfill its mission."

LATEST NEWS

• College of Optometry unveils new academic home in J.C. Penney Building
• UMSL partnership with Cigna gives students 'a key to the front door' of technology careers
• Social Work Senior Academic Advisor Tchule Moore delivers books to school children in Malawi
• Eye on UMSL: Smile
• Shu Schiller named among St. Louis' Most Influential Business Women for 2026
• Graduate counseling student Stepheon Kaiser earns competitive Roy Blunt Behavioral Health Scholarship
• UMSL to provide business training to students from The Bahamas Agriculture & Marine Science Institute
• UMSL, St. Mary's South Side Catholic High School sign deal to turn dreams into degrees for students, staff
• UMSL's Teach in Residency provides flexible path to career in education
• College of Nursing celebrates newest graduates at Awards and Pinning Ceremony