Rep. Justin Jones Speaks Out on Data Center Part of Fisk University’s $1B Project Plan
Fisk University is receiving backlash for its Quantum Leap project. The $1 billion project plans to improve the student experience by building a data and tech centre, renovating the student area, and upgrading student classrooms, according to a press release. The Quantum Leap project The innovation centre will be a $400 million project spanning a […] The post Rep. Justin Jones Speaks Out on Data Center Part of Fisk University’s $1B Project Plan appeared first on POCIT. Telling the stories and thoughts of the underrepresented in tech..
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Fisk University is receiving backlash for its Quantum Leap project. The $1 billion project plans to improve the student experience by building a data and tech centre, renovating the student area, and upgrading student classrooms, according to a press release.
The Quantum Leap project
The innovation centre will be a $400 million project spanning a 100,000-square-foot facility with 30,000 square feet of academic space and 70,000 square feet of technology centre. The centre will provide students with new and existing curricula, as well as tech-forward interdisciplinary studies.
“Reflecting Fisk University’s commitment to academic excellence and constant advancement, Quantum Leap emboldens Fisk to embrace its next chapter of institutional growth and innovation,” said Dr Brian L. Nelms, Fisk University provost.
“Quantum Leap represents our commitment to building upon our storied legacy while paving the way for sustained growth to ensure Fisk continues to empower its students, faculty and community. Through our campus master plan, the institution is poised to emerge as a leader in higher education and innovation,” Dr Agenia W. Clark, president of Fisk University, adds.
The backlash against the data centre
Tennessee Representative Justin Jones has raised concerns about the data centre and its environmental impact, according to HBCU Game Day. “If it’s not good for a white community, it’s not good for a black community,” Jones said at a protest on campus that included alumni, neighbours, and community leaders.
“What they’re doing is they are preying on North Nashville, a community that has already been exploited, extracted from, treated as second class,” Jones said. “And what we’re here to say is we will not let that happen without resistance,” he added. Winston Wright, a Fisk graduate and public health professional, started an online petition opposing the project, which has 6,000 signatures. Wright highlighted that North Nashville residents have historically shouldered the burden of large projects, as The Tennessean reported.
However, Fisk University say the project will do no harm.
“Fisk University understands and appreciates the community’s response to and interest in Quantum Leap and the Innovation Centre,” the university said in a statement. “Fisk’s 160-year legacy in 37208 has always been defined by excellence, and our North Nashville neighbors have played a critical role in that history but also remain essential to our future. We would never cause harm here.”
Image: Seth Herald/Getty Images
The post Rep. Justin Jones Speaks Out on Data Center Part of Fisk University’s $1B Project Plan appeared first on POCIT. Telling the stories and thoughts of the underrepresented in tech..
