Western Unveils Cavalier Strength Center

Western Technical College recently unveiled the newly renovated space in the Western Wellness Center. The renovated space will provide greater access to an array of strength training equipment and provide an environment suitable for strength training. The Wellness Center worked to remove barriers for students by eliminating its membership fees, ensuring that Western students had access to a vital resource to improve their physical, mental, and social well-being.  

Wellness and Athletics Manager, Ryan Monroe commented on the improvements to the facility, “We wanted to follow industry trends, student desires, and the ability to maximize every square foot of our facility. What we know is that our members’ most used area of our existing facility was the strength training area. We also understand the limitations of our previous layout in terms of capacity to meet this demand.”  

Improvements to the space, now referred to as the Cavalier Strength Center included the installation of rubberized flooring, specially designed for strength training, and the installation of four new squat racks equipped with new barbells, bumper plates, and benches. In addition, the space will include additional dumbbells, kettlebells, bands, and strength training machines. Western Powerlifting Coach, Jordan Beenken added, "This project offers new opportunities for all Western students to explore strength training with high-quality equipment. The additional space allows for students to complete workouts efficiently to better fit busy schedules as well. In addition, our student-athletes have new opportunities to grow and develop as a team through more organized team workouts".

The Western Wellness Center serves as a valuable resource for all Western students and houses critical resources for Western Athletics. Monroe noted, “Our five-year strategic plan aims to remove barriers, align resources, and provide targeted offerings that meet the needs of our students to maximize engagement. By renovating the Cavalier Strength Center, we can more efficiently use our facility to meet student needs and better support our athletic teams.” 

Western Athletics announced the launch of two new sports offerings, Clay Target and Powerlifting to replace the Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams. Monroe commented, “One of the difficulties we had previously was not having the facilities or resources to support our athletic teams on campus. Based on the strong feedback we obtained from students, we acted to improve our on-campus facilities and align our sports offerings with available resources to increase student engagement.”  

The Western Wellness Center is free to use for all Western Students but is also open for Western staff, retirees, alumni at a discounted rate. In addition, the Wellness Center is used for many of the athletic needs including volleyball and baseball practice and sports performance training. The Wellness Center is open 6am-9pm Monday through Thursday; 6am-6pm on Friday; and 10am-3pm on Saturdays.