Robert Alost Hall is the newest addition to Northwestern State University, replacing Kyser Hall as the campus’s main academic building. Besides the new class spaces in Alost Hall, there are meeting rooms available to anyone who schedules them, offices for faculty, study rooms for students and a newly added café.
Sophie Menard is a freshman secondary education major who likes the addition of the café downstairs, which provides snacks and drinks for purchase and is accompanied by a seating area. “Personally, I haven’t had a chance to get something from there, but I really think it offers so much refueling throughout the day for the other students, which I know I’ll need,” Menard said.
With construction beginning in March 2023, the building officially opened in August 2025 for students at the start of the fall semester. The $45 million, 73,200-square-foot building welcomes graduate and undergraduate students with a variety of classroom and lab sizes, specifically geared toward the fields of nursing, social work and psychology.
Kristen Bull is a senior English major who enjoys the new rooms. “There are a lot of little work stations that are secluded, where you can work, be surrounded by other students and have support if needed,” Bull said.
The building opened late due to construction delays and still required minor work as the semester began, making for an unconventional start for students. “[The construction] hasn’t really affected me personally in any real ways, except for the fact that [the building] was opened before it was completed, so faculty were not moved to the places they were supposed to be,” Bull said.
The new addition of Alost Hall has contributed to an increase in morale for some students. Jessica Grover, a sophomore social work major, has not had any classes in the new building, but sees the impact it has had on campus. “I feel like it really brightens up the campus. It’s a very pretty and aesthetic building in comparison to the dullness of the traditional buildings. Especially at night, it feels very modern and luxurious,” Grover said. “A lot of the students are really excited about it. If you ask ‘have you had any classes in Alost?’ every student I’ve talked to gets really hyped and ready to talk about it.”
The new addition to campus encourages students academically and socially while giving students, faculty and visitors of NSU a glance at future innovations.
