Facilities
The Junell Center/Stephens Arena
The addition of the Junell Center/Stephens Arena to the Angelo State University landscape is destined to usher in a whole new era in events programming for the campus and for the West Texas community served by the University.
The recently-completed facility will provide a first-class setting for educational, cultural, social, and athletic events for audiences and spectators numbering up to 6,500. The Center has enabled the University to bring commencement activities, previously staged in the city's coliseum, home to the campus.
Fans watch the Rambelles and the Rams "do their thing" on a gleaming wood court that also serves as a UIL playoff site for area public schools. The fans can also catch the "instant replay" on the 9x12 foot video screen - the only one of its kind in the Lone Star Conference.
Speaking engagements, Distinguished Lecture Series, cultural and entertainment programs, exhibitions...these are just a few of the special programming activities that will be able to be staged for large audiences and groups in the new center.
A multi-use area is available for smaller programs or as additional space for larger programs requiring its use in conjunction with the arena floor. This space also doubles as a practice site for the Rambelles and Rams and may also be used for classes and even dinners.
Other support spaces in the building include a warming kitchen for catering needs for banquets and other dining events and a "green room" for performers waiting to "go on stage."On the administrative side, the Junell Center is home for the University's athletic staffs offering a support complex with offices, conference rooms, and classrooms - many of which are designed to serve multiple uses.
Downstairs adjacent to the arena floor are the dressing rooms for the Rambelle and Ram athletic teams. These are supported by a sports medicine center, equipment rooms, storage facilities, and a laundry room.
A specially-appointed reception lounge will be housed in the Junell Center/Stephens Arena. Looking out over the arena floor, the lounge will be the site for dinners, receptions, and other programs requiring that extra "touch of class."
Add two weight rooms that look out over the track complex through gleaming glass walls and a Hall of Fame that will herald the accomplishments of ASU athletes through the ages to those entering the Junell Center...and you have it...one of the premier arena facilities in the State and a crowning jewel for the campus and the community.
The Junell Center was made possible by funding from the Texas State Legislature, with a $30 million dollar package made available for the construction of the new special events center and renovations for the existing University Center.
The Board of Regents of The Texas State University System approved the plans for the new center, at an estimated cost of $20 million. Groundbreaking ceremonies were held in the summer of 1999, and construction was completed in December of 2001.
The new center is on university-owned property on Varsity Drive, running parallel to Jackson Street and north of the Multipurpose Sports Complex.
