Wilkinson Student Center

Ernest L. Wilkinson Student Center: Where We Began (1964)

Brigham Young University’s student centers have long reflected the school’s deep commitment to fostering community and student life. The first major student hub was the original Joseph Smith Building, completed in 1941. For nearly 50 years, it housed the university’s main ballroom, cafeteria, and auditorium, becoming a central location for plays, concerts, dances, and student assemblies. Built through a Church welfare initiative with donated labor and materials from local stakes and students, the JSB was a product of shared sacrifice and vision. Though eventually repurposed for offices and eventually removed in 1990, its legacy as BYU’s original student center lives on in memory and name.

Less than four months after breaking ground on the Alumni House in the early 1960s, BYU launched construction on what would become the most ambitious and expensive building project in campus history to that point, the Ernest L. Wilkinson Student Center. Named after BYU’s sixth president (1951–1971), construction began on June 16, 1961, and was completed in 1964 at a cost of $6 million. Funding came from a mix of sources, 60% from student funds, 22% from the Church, and the remaining 18% from auxiliary services. At a Board meeting just before the dedication, President Wilkinson was asked to leave the room, fearing his building proposals had gone too far. To his surprise, the Board voted to name the building in his honor, making it the only structure on campus named after a sitting university president.

From its inception, the Wilkinson Center was designed to be the heart of campus life. It included everything from a post office, copy center, and barber shop to entertainment options like a bowling alley, arcade, movie theater, and two ballrooms. Larger than the student centers at the University of Utah and Utah State combined, it quickly became one of the most functional student service buildings in the country. On a single day in October 1968, over 34,000 people were counted entering the building, underscoring its importance as BYU’s social and cultural epicenter. Today, the Wilkinson Center continues to carry forward the tradition started in the JSB: providing students with a vibrant, welcoming space to connect, serve, and grow.

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