Former Missouri Gov. Mike Parson, center, prepares to cut the ribbon for the Humphreys Building modernization
project on April 29. To the left of Parson is UCM President Roger Best. They are surrounded by UCM Board of Governors
members, state and university officials, representatives of Centric and Hollis + Miller, and UCM senior Colin Caruthers.

 

After an extensive modernization project spanning more than two years, the University of Central Missouri (UCM) celebrated the grand reopening of the Humphreys Building with a ribbon cutting on Wednesday, April 29.

Through a $39.8 million investment by the state of Missouri, the Humphreys building has been transformed into a modern academic space that supports teaching, learning and student success. UCM partnered with Centric Construction, Hollis + Miller Architects and Cuningham Group to complete the project, which sits in the center of UCM鈥檚 Warrensburg campus.

 

鈥淔or more than a century, spaces within this building have been used for learning, collaboration and the advancement of individuals, professions, the university, the State of Missouri, and beyond,鈥� UCM President Roger Best said.

鈥淭oday, we officially rededicate this building to those purposes following its complete rejuvenation and modernization. You will find therein uses, programs and technologies that could not have been envisioned when the first cornerstone was laid in the early 1900s. And with this reopening, you also find our continual commitment to improving the very nature of how students learn, how faculty instruct and how staff serve. You will find our continual commitment to 鈥楨ducation for Service.鈥欌��

The structure was once two separate facilities built in 1915 and 1916, which were joined in 1970. Over the years, Humphreys has housed classrooms, administrative offices, a number of student service areas and even an indoor rifle and pistol range. It also spent years as home to College High School. Now, more than a century after the building first welcomed students, Humphreys features modern offices, multidisciplinary classrooms and student common spaces, all while preserving the original structure.

Humphreys is home to the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology, Army ROTC, the McNair Scholars Program, UCM Esports, the Testing Center, the Counseling Center, the Office of Health Promotion and the Missouri Safety Center offices. It also houses several programs within Online and Extended Studies: the Missouri Center for Career Education, WeMet and Early College Programs.

 

鈥淧rojects like this strengthen the university, enhance the student experience and help ensure that UCM graduates are ready to contribute in meaningful ways across Missouri and beyond,鈥� said Ken Weymuth, UCM Board of Governors member. 鈥淲e鈥檙e proud of what this building represents, and even more excited about what it will make possible for the students who will walk through these doors in the years ahead.鈥�

Colin Caruthers, a senior Construction Management major, served as a field management intern with Centric on the Humphreys Building renovations.

 

鈥淭he experience I had working on the Humphreys project brought everything full circle,鈥� Caruthers said. 鈥淚t connected what I learned in the classroom to something real, something that would last. It also deepened my connection to UCM and gave me a sense of pride in being able to leave my mark and give back to a place that鈥檚 given me so much.鈥�

Caruthers turned his campus experience into a full-time job with Centric, which will begin after he graduates next weekend. He will also be commissioned through Army ROTC as a second lieutenant in the Missouri Army National Guard.

Former Gov. Mike Parson and Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins, who previously served as state senator for District 31, both played a role in helping UCM obtain state funding for the modernization efforts. For Hoskins, attending the ribbon cutting ceremony held extra meaning 鈥� he is a UCM alumnus who attended classes in Humphreys as a student.

During his time as governor, Parson鈥檚 priorities were improving infrastructure and workforce development. While many people may associate infrastructure with projects like the Interstate 70 expansion, the Humphreys Building is an example of how those two priorities can intersect.

 

鈥淭his building is infrastructure, and the classrooms are infrastructure, because the people that walk out of there are going to build the future,鈥� Parson said. 鈥淣ot me. They are 鈥� these young men and women that have an opportunity to have a world-class education right here in Warrensburg, Missouri. Right here in central Missouri. That's what's important.鈥�

Parson said the Warrensburg and Lee鈥檚 Summit communities should be proud of UCM鈥檚 leadership, employees and students, calling UCM one of the best higher education institutions in Missouri.

The campus milestone coincided with another day of significance, as UCM hosted its annual Founders Day celebration on the quad immediately following the ribbon cutting. Students, employees and community members had the opportunity to tour the Humphreys Building for the first time since construction began in early 2024. The facility will return to full operations for the fall 2026 semester.

The History of Humphreys

 

The Humphreys Building is named after Pauline A. Humphreys, who came to campus in 1912 as an assistant in the Department of Education. She was named head of the department and professor of Education in 1930 and served in that capacity until 1945, when she was made director of the Division of Education. From 1947 until her retirement in 1952, Humphreys was director of the research and testing bureau.

The structure was once two separate facilities built in 1915 and 1916, which were joined in 1970. The east end of Humphreys was known originally as the Training School, renamed the College Laboratory School in 1938, and later the Humphreys Educational Building in 1954.

Two years earlier, the Teacher Education Division had moved to the building when the institution pioneered the inauguration of the student teacher training block system in Missouri. The block system required that future teachers, upon completion of academic and professional courses, spend one term teaching in the lab school under the direction of supervisors.

The west half of Humphreys was the original Wilson C. Morris Science Building. After a new science facility was constructed, the two buildings were joined and the Humphreys name extended to the whole complex.

The building鈥檚 east end rests on the foundation of the original Training School and shares three walls of the original structure. After the fire of 1915, it was only necessary to rebuild the front and interior of the sandstone building. The Training School was rebuilt and occupied by 1916. The west wall of the building was dismantled, in part, when the structure was joined with the science building.

The university鈥檚 motto, 鈥淓ducation for Service,鈥� can be seen inscribed beside the northeast entrance of the Humphreys Building. It was originally meant as an inscription for the Training School but was soon adopted as the motto of the university. The phrase was authored by Laura Louise Runyon, who served the institution as an associate professor of History from 1902 until 1930.

Throughout the years, Humphreys has housed classrooms, administrative offices, a number of student service areas and even an indoor rifle and pistol range.