Thirteen Indiana colleges and universities received more than $300 million from the Lilly Endowment to improve the quality of life in their communities.

Some of the projects that will be funded through the College and Community Collaboration grants include enhancements to green spaces, new wellness and athletic facilities, redevelopment initiatives, and increased work-based learning opportunities for local students.

Brian Lowry, director of communications and public relations at Calumet College of Saint Joseph, said the college will use part of the $15 million it received to fund public transportation and create spaces that celebrate Hammond’s rich history of industry and immigration.

Calumet’s main academic building used to be a Standard Oil Company research and development facility. The abandoned seventh floor, which used to serve as a lounge for oil executives, will be transformed into a public gathering space that overlooks the Chicago skyline and Lake Michigan.

Lowry said exhibits throughout the rest of the building will pay homage to the history and people of Hammond.

“It’s a really rich and vibrant place, and this will help us celebrate that,” he said.

Calumet will also use the grant to fund opportunities for students to work with local nonprofits like American Red Cross, Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Northwest Indiana and local crisis centers.

“It’s really important for us to expand on those because those nonprofits are so important to the region. So many people rely on them,” Lowry said.

Melissa Beckwith, executive vice president and chief strategy officer at Butler University, said Butler had conversations with the community to decide which projects to pursue with the grant funding. Butler received $22.5 million to make improvements to the university’s campus and the surrounding Tarkington neighborhood just north of downtown Indianapolis.

The selected projects include improvements to Holcomb Gardens and a new safety and transit hub at the university. Tarkington Park will also see significant enhancements.

“The funds will be used to provide additional playgrounds and shelter enhancements, which will complement the additional walking spaces, sports fields, pickleball courts, and the green infrastructure that’s under development,” Beckwith said.

A wellness facility will also be constructed as part of an expansion to the Martin Luther King Community Center across the street from Tarkington Park.

Beckwith said collaboration between the university and the community is important because a thriving Indianapolis midtown supports Butler, and a thriving Butler supports midtown.

“The relationship between the two is critical to one another’s success,” she said.

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The $30.5 million grant awarded to Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology is the largest grant the college has ever received. Rose-Hulman will use the grant to launch its “Trails to Innovation” project, which will create a new technological and entrepreneurship space that will house a hip and knee replacement facility, STEM and robotics programs for the Vigo County School Corporation and an innovative workspace.

The project also includes a solar farm and a new network of trails that will connect to existing trails and parks in Terre Haute.

The University of Notre Dame plans to use the $30 million grant it received to redevelop the former South Bend Tribune building into a new tech and talent hub that is expected to drive economic growth and development in downtown South Bend.

Other colleges and universities that received grants include:

• DePauw University
  Whiting
  $32 million
• Grace College
  Winona Lake
  $27 million
• Hanover College
  Hanover
  $30 million
• Indiana Institute of Technology
  Fort Wayne
  $21 million
• Indiana University
  Bloomington
  $16 million
• Indiana Wesleyan University
  Marion
  $24.3 million
• Manchester University
  North Manchester
  $12.1 million
• Marian University
  Indianapolis
  $25 million
• Trine University
  South Bend
  $17.2 million

The Lilly Endowment also provides funding to Indiana Public Broadcasting News.

Kirsten is our education reporter. Contact her at kadair@wfyi.org or follow her on Twitter at @kirsten_adair.