‘A great day to be a Charger’: Sandburg breaks ground on new Charger Center
Aaron Frey, coordinator of marketing, 309.341.5301, afrey@sandburg.edu
Aug. 28, 2026
GALESBURG — While Theo Salim’s time as a student and men’s soccer player at Sandburg will be over when the Charger Center is complete, it didn’t stop the college’s student trustee from showing off his excitement at the groundbreaking ceremony for the new athletic and conference facility.
“Today,” Salim said, “is a great day to be a Charger.”
Students, staff members, alumni and community members gathered Thursday at the Galesburg campus to usher in the next chapter in Sandburg history. In front of them were bulldozers, trackhoes and acres of dirt — the beginnings of a construction site that will transform the college’s southeast corner.
The Charger Center is a 70,204-square-foot facility that will serve as the new home for Sandburg’s athletic programs and support additional academic and community use. Initial work on the $35 million project began earlier this month, and it’s scheduled to open in late 2027.
“While we are building a wonderful space on what was a wonderful agricultural space, we are indeed planting the seeds for the future for all of those students and members of our region to come,” President Dr. Seamus Reilly said.
Designed by Legat Architects and to be built by Estes Construction, the Charger Center will include:
• Two wood-floor gymnasiums for athletic competitions and large events
• An additional gymnasium with multi-purpose flooring
• Fitness and training areas
• A golf simulator room
• An esports arena
• Multi-purpose areas
• Turf fields for baseball, softball and soccer
Throughout the planning and design process, an emphasis was placed on making sure the Charger Center will function as more than simply a home for Sandburg’s teams. It will be a place that can serve as a host for youth sports tournaments, industry expos, regional workforce trainings, Sandburg’s annual commencement and more.
“This is not just for Sandburg students,” said Dr. Autumn Scott, vice president of student development. “It’s an investment in District 518 and the entire region. It creates a place where students, families, businesses, alumni and community members can gather, celebrate and learn.”
Located adjacent to building G, the front of the Charger Center will look across Tom L. Wilson Blvd. toward the rest of the Galesburg campus. Turf playing fields will be located on the south side of the facility. The complex will be a dramatic upgrade from the current gymnasium, which has been the Chargers’ home since it opened in 1978, and the existing fitness center, which opened in the early 1990s.
“The Charger Center will be a place where students compete, learn, celebrate and build lifelong connections,” Scott said. “It creates opportunities for future Chargers who may choose Sandburg because they see a college committed to excellence. The project strengthens our ability to recruit and retain students, providing experiences that help them thrive inside and outside the classroom.”
It’s the latest step in a campus master plan that has served as a roadmap for improvements and developments on Sandburg’s grounds in recent and coming years. Completed phases of the plan include the 2024 opening of the Science & Technology Center and the 2025 unveiling of the renovated Student Center.
“Today, we are making history,” Salim said. “Future graduates will cross the stage here. Families will celebrate here. Students will compete. Students will grow, will learn, will change here. And also today in this groundbreaking, we are creating a foundation that will become part of thousands of Sandburg stories. We are creating the future here for the next generation.”
