A key SUNY Buffalo State academic building has reopened after two years of renovation.

Caudell Hall underwent a $22 million overhaul that began in June 2014. The building houses the college's social work, speech-language pathology, hospitality and tourism, and health, nutrition and dietetics departments.

Students and faculty began using the renovated building for the first time earlier this semester. College officials celebrated its opening on Thursday.

Built in 1962, the 21,000-square-foot building has three floors that were gutted and renovated to meet the needs of the academic programs. The building features classrooms, offices, conference space, and state-of-the-art food laboratories, including one lab with a demonstration area that opens into the main lobby.

The original layout of the building did not allow for the type of collaboration across academic disciplines considered to be essential to learning today.