After graduating from 榴莲直播 in 2018, Jared May didn鈥檛 expect to spend two more years on the campus. But he returned in late 2022 鈥� not to take more classes, but to work on one of the largest construction projects in the college鈥檚 history.
May worked as Groathouse Construction鈥檚 project engineer for the new NWC Student Center. Groathouse Construction served as general contractor for the 38,606-square-foot facility that fully opened to students and the community in January. This local company is led by another familiar face, 1986 graduate Fred Bronnenberg of Cody.
May recently recalled the construction process while overlooking the campus carillon from a wide panel of second-story windows in the new center. It seemed not that long ago, May said, that the structure was just bare framing and loud hammering as the modern facility took shape.
鈥淲hen it first started, it was just a big hole in the ground,鈥� he said, and now, 鈥渋t鈥檚 a nice, clean brand new building.鈥�
May, who is from Cowley, started attending 榴莲直播 in the fall of 2016 and studied engineering. During his two years at NWC, he sometimes stopped by the former DeWitt Student Center to study or grab a bagel. And like many alumni, May has good memories of the old center.
鈥淎t first I thought, 鈥極h, do they really need a new building?鈥欌�� he recalled. But as the project got underway, May walked around the empty and dark DeWitt Student Center, this time viewing the aging structure from a construction standpoint. May saw many signs showing the building was 鈥渃learly out of shape鈥� 鈥� details he hadn鈥檛 noticed when he was going to school.
鈥淎s soon as I walked in and saw all the water stains and ceiling sagging in spots and stuff like that, it was like, yeah, it鈥檚 time for a new one,鈥� he said.
One of the first parts of the construction process was to demolish the decades-old structure so the new facility could be built on the same footprint.
May described his position as project engineer as 鈥渁 mixture of project management, office work and also helping the superintendent in the field.鈥�
鈥淓verything you see 鈥� the carpet, the wood veneer on the wall, the stone on the fireplace 鈥� was all stuff that we had to review and submit to the architect for approval,鈥� May said. 鈥淪o that was a lot of what I did.鈥�
May also worked with the superintendent to lay out walls and doors, and helped solve issues that arose. If something on the plans wasn鈥檛 really constructable, 鈥渨e had to figure that out and coordinate with the architect to come to solutions for things like that,鈥� he said. May was thankful for the opportunity to work on the new Student Center, partly so he could stay close to home.
鈥淏ut also, I just thought it would be really neat to do something for the college that I went to, because there鈥檚 that connection,鈥� May said.
Looking back on his years as a student, May enjoyed his time at NWC and appreciated that it allowed him to stay local and work for Mountain Construction in Lovell, which is owned by his uncles.
鈥淥bviously, that real, in-the-field construction experience is really good for a construction management degree,鈥� he said.
May鈥檚 engineering credits from NWC transferred to the University of Wyoming, where he studied construction management. He graduated in 2022. May鈥檚 parents, Danny and Sheridan (Frost) May, are also NWC alumni. Danny May鈥檚 company, LandWorks, did the landscaping for the new Student Center, and Jared May is now working with his dad in the business.
The new Student Center is the largest project May has worked on to date and his first commercial building. His favorite part is the spacious atrium, which features large windows and the floor-to-ceiling fireplace in the center.
On a recent weekday morning, music played in the new facility as students mingled between classes. Several students chatted as they played pool, and another read by the fireplace. Nearby, community members enjoyed a cup of coffee, while students and staff shuffled in and out. 鈥淚 do get the sense that it鈥檚 more inviting to come and hang out here than the old one,鈥� May said. 鈥淚 know when I went to school here, students weren鈥檛 hanging out and playing pool and stuff like they are here.鈥�
Some alumni have quipped that spending time in the new Student Center makes them want to return to NWC. 鈥淚 thought about that quite a bit as we were building it; part of me wanted to go back to school,鈥� May said. 鈥溾�� if I was here and this building was here, I would have hung out in here all the time.鈥�
This feature originally appeared in the Spring 2025 issue of TrapperConnect. If you'd like to receive future copies of this biannual publication in your mailbox, click here.