Faith and reason coexist at Franciscan University’s Christ the Teacher Hall and Pope St. Paul VI Conference Center

STEUBENVILLE, Ohio (WTRF) — One hundred eleven thousand square feet is huge for any academic building, but it’s fitting for one of the world’s cornerstones of Catholic education.

Franciscan’s Christ the Teacher Hall cut the ribbon to show why faith and reason don’t contradict, but complement each other.

Fourteen labs, a dozen classrooms and a space for 500-person conferences.

That’s what the crowd gathered outside Christ the Teacher Hall and Pope St. Paul the Sixth Conference Center cheered for Wednesday morning.

The $57 million building resulted from the university’s Rebuild My Church capital campaign, the school’s push into a future of higher student enrollment and demand for a faith-driven education.

The three-floor building has new accommodations for engineering, nursing and business students, along with new Catholic art displays and study spaces tucked into nearly every corner.

Some of the newly revealed features include woodworking tools, a hospital room with mannequins to simulate different ailments, and a rotating stock ticker.

“The reason we named it Christ the Teacher is that Christ is the lord of everything. Not just Sunday morning, right, but of everything. So we really wanted a space that reminds us that what makes Franciscan University unique is that we believe that, yes, we’re going to learn from our professors, but also from faith.”

Fr. Dave Pivonka, President, Franciscan University of Steubenville

A mural outside the building states that faith and reason are like two wings, and with both working together, we can rise toward the truth.

It’s a journey that Franciscan’s hundreds of new students will begin at Christ the Teacher Hall this coming Monday.

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