CSUSM to Celebrate Opening of Viasat Engineering Pavilion

Cal State San Marcos will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony at noon on Friday, March 11, to celebrate the opening of the university’s Viasat Engineering Pavilion.

The pavilion is named in honor of the Carlsbad-based company that provided a $1.5 million gift to become the founding partner of CSUSM’s electrical and software engineering programs. Viasat’s gift helped the university renovate classroom and lab space, purchase new equipment and instrumentation, and support the work of students and faculty.

“Building engineering at CSUSM has been, from the start, about creating the very best program possible to help foster a diverse talent pipeline,” CSUSM President Ellen Neufeldt said.

Neufeldt is scheduled to speak at the ribbon-cutting ceremony along with Kevin Harkenrider, Viasat executive vice president and chief operating officer; and Jackie Trischman, interim dean of CSUSM's College of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (CSTEM).

The ceremonial ribbon-cutting had previously been scheduled for March 2020, but had to be postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. From Aug. 10, 2020 until June 30, 2021, the Viasat Engineering Pavilion was used by San Diego County as a walk-up COVID-19 testing site.

The Viasat Engineering Pavilion is located in the former Foundation Classroom Building, which was home to CSUSM’s Extended Learning program before the opening of the new Extended Learning Building in fall 2019. The first phase of the Viasat Engineering Pavilion renovation, creating software and electrical engineering labs and a collaborative space, was completed in August 2019. The second phase – which created offices, the Hunter Design Lab and the Nordson Innovation Lab – was completed in February 2020.

Viasat has been a longtime supporter of numerous programs across CSUSM, and the company has been an especially strong supporter of the university’s College of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.

“Viasat has been such an important partner for CSUSM for many years, and the company’s generous support has played a vital role in the launch and ongoing success of our engineering programs,” Trischman said. “Although it’s happening two years later than we expected and hoped, we’re grateful to have this opportunity to celebrate Viasat’s significant contributions.”

Software engineering launched at CSUSM in fall 2018, and electrical engineering followed in fall 2019.

What: Ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate opening of Viasat Engineering Pavilion, home to CSUSM’s electrical and software engineering programs

When: Noon, Friday, March 11

Where: Viasat Engineering Pavilion on the campus of Cal State San Marcos