Auburn Board of Trustees agrees to create new scoreboard for north end of Jordan-Hare Stadium

Jordan-Hare Stadium will get a new scoreboard for the north end zone.

The Auburn University Board of Trustees accepted the proposal from Auburn Athletics to replace the existing scoreboard at its Feb. 2 meeting, held on the campus of Auburn University at Montgomery.

To facilitate a more timely and efficient design process, the board also agreed with the university architect’s recommendation to acquire the services of LBYD Engineers of Birmingham, Alabama. The firm was responsible for the south end zone scoreboard, which was first proposed to the board nine years ago.

The south end zone videoboard is one of the largest college videoboards at 190 feet wide by 57 feet tall.

Size details of the new scoreboard weren’t shared at the meeting, nor was the potential cost, but it will be funded by Auburn Athletics.

According to Auburn Athletics, the north end zone scoreboard was originally installed in 1987. The new board will be 47 feet high by 154 feet wide. Construction will begin this summer and be completed by the 2025 football season.

In other matters, the board

• Accepted a proposal to replace two 1979-era dormitories at the Solon Dixon Forestry Education Center with a new dormitory. This project will enable the center to expand its capacity, as well as provide more modern and comfortable accommodations for students and visitors. It is anticipated that the project will be financed by a combination of gifts and funds from the College of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment. Facilities Management can now begin the architect selection process. 

• Granted the president the authority to engage a real estate broker to market university land in Talbot County, Georgia. A 731-acre parcel of land was gifted to Auburn in 2016 by Diane Koart for the benefit of the Harbert College of Business. The property has been managed by the College of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment and has used the revenue from timber sales to significantly benefit Harbert Business. Harbert has received interest in the purchase of this property. Under Alabama law, the university may offer property for sale by listing it with a duly licensed real estate broker, if the institution determines that this procedure is economically justified and in the best interest of the university. 

• Granted the president the authority to accept an offer and sell a 22.03-acre parcel along Atlanta Highway in Montgomery, Alabama. Since the parcel does not provide any strategic need to Auburn University at Montgomery (AUM), the revenue from the sale can be used for AUM capital improvement needs, including development of the Alabama State Health Department building as an academic research facility. 

• Approved the implementation of an identity theft prevention program, per the Federal Trade Commission’s Red Flags Rule, which requires each financial institution or creditor to develop and implement a written identity theft program to detect, prevent and mitigate identity theft in connection with the opening of certain accounts or certain existing accounts. 

• Set the following meeting dates for 2024-25: Sept. 6, Nov. 15, Feb. 7, 2025 (at AUM), April 4, 2025, and June 6, 2025 (annual meeting). 

• Recognized Trustee Raymond Harbert for his two terms on the board and longtime philanthropic commitment to Auburn University, declaring him as Trustee Emeritus. 

The board learned about three new certificates offered by the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering:

• An undergraduate certificate in pulp, paper and bio-resources engineering, Department of Chemical Engineering;
• An undergraduate certificate in applied safety and ergonomics, Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering; and
• A graduate certificate in polymer engineering, Department of Chemical Engineering. 

Additionally, the board learned of a change in nomenclature for a degree program in the College of Liberal Arts. The program for a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in media studies will now be a BA in film and media studies.