The Loudermilk Center for Excellence houses the John W. Pope Student-Athlete Academic Support Center, a 29,000 square-foot facility that provides classrooms for teaching and tutoring, advanced computer technology, a writing lab, reading rooms and office space.
15.0 Facilities for Student-Athlete Academic Support
In 2011 Carolina opened the Loudermilk Center for Excellence and a premium football seating section named the Blue Zone. Alumnus R. Charles “Charlie” Loudermilk Sr. of Atlanta made a $7.5 million donation to fund the 150,000 square-foot facility that serves all of Carolina’s nearly 800 student-athletes across 28 sports. The Blue Zone offers 1,836 seats in the Concourse Club/Loge just a few feet from the field; 824 seats in the Upper Club/Loge on the 4th floor; and 320 seats in 20 suites on the 5th floor. Combined, the Blue Zone project added 2,980 seats to Kenan Stadium’s capacity. It also tied the north and south concourses together to provide a 360 degree concourse to enhance fan movement in the facility. When not in use for official athletic events, the concourse area in the Blue Zone can be utilized for student-athlete meetings and study space (see Department of Athletics Facility Use Request Form below).
15.1 John W. Pope Student-Athlete Academic Support Center
The Loudermilk Center’s largest feature is the John W. Pope Student-Athlete Academic Support Center (see Process 7.0 Academic Support for Student-Athletes). This 29,000 square-foot facility provides classrooms for teaching and tutoring, advanced computer technology, a writing lab, reading rooms and office space. It is also home to UNC’s Student-Athlete Development programs (see Process 18.0 Student-Athlete Development), including the Carolina Leadership Academy which offers leadership training to Carolina’s student-athletes, coaches and staff.
Also housed in the Loudermilk Center are the UNC Department of Athletics Business Office, a strength and conditioning center for Carolina’s Olympic sports programs, facilities for men’s lacrosse, and a visitor’s locker room that can be split to host high school football championships.
15.2 Department of Athletics Facility Use Request Form
To reserve space in Loudermilk, campus groups must use the Department of Athletics Facility Use Request Form. The request form and guidelines were developed by the Department of Athletics with approval from UNC Risk Management.
Examples of groups that use space, including the 3rd and 5th floor concourses, in Loudermilk:
- Teams (for meetings, etc.)
- Department of Athletics Student Development (e.g., Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Carolina Leadership Academy, CREED)
- Student-athlete and non-student-athlete groups
- Other UNC Departments
- Outside groups