Lead architect Robert A.M. Stern explains the floor plan of the George W. Bush Presidential Center during a press tour the morning of Oct. 3. The Center will open its doors in 2013. (Spencer J Eggers/The Daily Campus)

The George W. Bush Presidential Center held its Topping Out Ceremony on the east side of campus Monday, bringing new opportunities for SMU students.

The Bush Center will house both the presidential museum and the Bush Institute, the former president’s think tank, which will bring important figures and prominent scholars to campus.

“The George W. Bush Presidential Center will guarantee that SMU students have access to nationally and internationally renowned scholars, activists and decision-makers,” senior and student trustee Adriana Martinez said. “SMU students will have the opportunity to engage with and be a part of the conversations that are shaping our world.”

The center’s partnership with SMU has been a major factor in developing all aspects of both the institute and the museum.

“We talk everyday to the leadership, faculty and students at SMU about how the library can be useful to them,” director of the library and the museum Alan Lowe said. “That is the whole idea, to be a useful resource to them.”

The presidential library will house permanent exhibits on No Child Left Behind, 9/11 and presidential decision-making, as well as temporary exhibits and an archive of over 190 million emails and documents from Bush’s two terms in office.

These archives and exhibits are available for SMU students and center visitors.

“How can they use our classrooms? How can they use our archives, different programs we want to put together working with different groups?” Lowe said. “I want to get my staff into the classrooms.”

“It’s a wonderful addition to campus already,” SMU President R. Gerald Turner said.

The building itself is a nod to SMU. The top of the Bush Center’s Freedom Hall resembles the dome of Dallas Hall, and it will use the same brick as the rest of campus.

“We wanted the building to fit in with SMU, but we also wanted it to represent the first decade of the new century,” Laura Bush, who chaired the design committee, said. “It’s a great addition to our campus and to this part of the city.”

Laura Bush is a SMU alumna, and her love for the school greatly influenced the building’s design and purpose. The building was planned specifically with the students in mind.

“Top scholars, political figures and so on will come and spend time writing papers, thinking about the state of the world and interacting with SMU students and faculty,” Bush Center architect Robert A.M. Stern said. “That’s why the entrance faces directly to SMU.”

After its opening in 2013, the Bush Center will have a widespread impact on the SMU campus and on the entire student body. But SMU students are encouraged to interact with the scholars the Bush Institute has already brought to campus and to apply for internships with the center.

“For me personally, this wonderful partnership has directly led to once-in-a-lifetime opportunities and meaningful relationships with extraordinary leaders,” Martinez said. “It has enhanced my understanding of the United States’ history and given me the confidence to know that I can affect our future.”

Video shot and edited by Bridget Bennett, [email protected]