Hub for Innovators, Veterans, and Entrepreneurs (HIVE)

The yearlong rehabilitation of an 18,000-square-foot National Guard Armory building into a future-focused technology hub, innovation accelerator, and magnet location for tech business startup, expansion, and relocation has been realized.

Shenandoah University students, staff, board of trustees and elected officials recently gathered on campus to watch as the historic Hazel-Pruitt Armory building — home of SU’s Hub for Innovators, Veterans, and Entrepreneurs (HIVE) — was officially unveiled and reopened. *

Built in 1940, the building originally served as a training ground for the National Guard from World War II until the early 1990s. The building is named for two donors whose gifts made the project possible, and it has deep historical significance in Winchester as it was once home to the only National Guard unit whose soldiers landed on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. The National Guard gifted the armory to SU a couple of decades ago, but it took awhile for the school to decide how to honor that legacy while also looking toward the future.

The HIVE complex now houses new headquarters for SU’s Center for Immersive Learning (SCIL), where students create immersive virtual reality experiences to enhance learning, training, and more. There’s also a space for eSports management students, who are delving into a growing and buzzing industry. Most of the resources in the repurposed Armory building are centered on technology fields ranging from cybersecurity to augmented and virtual reality to data analytics and artificial intelligence.

The building will also foster outreach to veterans and military-associated families through the Student Veterans Center. The Center for Entrepreneurship will eventually provide support for people who want to launch small businesses.

Shockey’s construction scope included stabilizing the building, removing asbestos, and installing new systems. The modern design features open, flexible spaces with glass cubicles to encourage collaboration. Architectural and historic elements were preserved.

Shenandoah University’s HIVE project will offer services in partnership with the Commonwealth of Virginia, the City of Winchester, the counties of Frederick and Clarke, and local educational entities like Laurel Ridge Community College and the Emil and Grace Shihadeh Innovation Center (part of Winchester City Public Schools), as well as other local organizations and private investors.

Architect for the project is ESa, based in Nashville.

* Source: Feature story by Molly Williams/Winchester Star