Indiana State University Newsroom

Indiana State University's iconic fountain is in store for a face lift.

The university's board of trustees Friday approved plans to renovate Dede Plaza, which was constructed in 1989. The project will include replacement of pavers and concrete sidewalks, construction of a new seat wall around the fountain, additional planting beds and upgrades to an existing seating terrace, which a popular place for students to study and socialize during warm weather.

Cost of the project is estimated at $1.45 million dollars, with funding to come from private gifts and interest income. Work is scheduled to begin following spring commencement in May and be completed in time for the start of the fall semester in August.

Trustees also approved a lease with the Indiana State University Foundation allowing the Terre Haute Rex to continue to play at Bob Warn Field at Sycamore Stadium for the 2014 through 2017 seasons. The foundation has sold the team to Wabash Valley Baseball LLC, a locally-owned corporation that plans to keep the Prospect League baseball team in Terre Haute.

Board members additionally approved an overall 5 percent increase in employee health insurance rates for 2014, including a 1.6 percent shift in employees' share of expenses in the third year of a five-year plan to increase the employee share to 33 percent of total costs. Employees can pay less for health coverage by participating in a wellness program and either not smoking or quitting smoking.

In other action, Indiana State trustees:• Approved a new certificate in safety management for graduate students who want to apply the principles of workplace and occupational safety in their careers

• Approved increases in graduate and international undergraduate application fees to support technology upgrades and increased compliance requirements while keeping the domestic undergraduate application fee unchanged at $25, where it has stood since 1998

• Approved making an existing $150 initial student housing payment non-refundable and expanding a $20 non-refundable application fee for first-time applicants to include returning students

• Approved changes in handbook language concerning the status of graduate faculty members following earlier changes in the definition of regular faculty and lecturers

• Approved a records retention policy that provides a formal framework for retention schedules.

Photo: http://isuphoto.smugmug.com/Campus-Scenes/Buildings01/Dede-Plaza/i-RWLqrQN/0/3X/_DSC2922Campus-3X.jpg - Indiana State University's Dede Plaza, which was constructed in 1989, is in line for renovation following action by the university's board of trustees.

Media contact and writer: Dave Taylor, media relations director, Office of Communications and Marketing, Indiana State University, 812-237-3743 or dave.taylor@indstate.edu