Say the words, “UConn Hartford,” and what comes to mind? The stately former Hartford Times building that has served as the flagship university’s downtown campus since its much-hailed renovation and opening in 2017?

While the main campus is the principal nexus of UConn’s presence in Connecticut’s capital city, it’s but one of a growing number of locations, programs, and initiatives underway that deepen the University’s ties with Hartford.

In fact, UConn’s presence in Hartford continues to grow, including plans to offer 200 beds of student housing in the bustling downtown Pratt Street district, the recent opening of a nearby research center, the growth of local internships and a planned co-op program, and other initiatives.

UConn is working with local and state leaders, the city and regional business community, alumni, and others on the “UConn IN Hartford” initiative, which seeks to provide students a community-centered experience in the capital city while they pursue their academics at UConn.

Scores of those supporters gathered recently to learn more about the university’s plans and to tour 64 Pratt St., which will be transformed from its former use as a law office into apartment-style units for about 200 UConn Hartford students.

Lexington Partners will work with Shelbourne Properties and LAZ Investments to jointly develop the apartments, and UConn will lease the space and run it as student housing starting in fall 2026 with on-site resident advisers and a hall director.

It’s part of a broader vision shared by UConn, state and local leaders, and others to position Hartford as a “college town,” in which students are a major part of Hartford’s culture, economy, and future.

“These dorms will be a huge boost to our capital city, bringing 200 more UConn students downtown who will reflect the diversity and incredible strength of our state, and who are going to make a name for themselves and change the world in so many different ways,” Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam said at the recent reception.

Hartford’s diversity is evident at the UConn campus, where the majority of students are either the first generation in their family to attend college, are students of color, or both.

About 86% received some form of financial aid last year, and about 58% received federal Pell Grants, which are awarded to the neediest students.

In a 2023 survey, about 70% of UConn Hartford undergraduates said that they would be interested in student housing nearby, but since most said they lived with their parents, the rent would need to be affordable to make it a viable option.

To expand access to the Pratt Street housing opportunity, the UConn Foundation has launched the new Hartford Residential Scholars Enhancement Fund, which will harness community contributions to provide stipends for qualifying students who want to live in the apartments, but couldn’t otherwise afford it.

The housing option and the initiative to help qualifying students with the costs are closely aligned with goals in the UConn Strategic Plan, which prioritizes holistic student success, access, affordability, and the strength of UConn’s regional campuses as integral to their host communities.

For UConn Hartford students, the student housing will provide the dual benefit of living in the vibrant downtown setting while having the kinds of supports and community-centered experiences that dorm life offers.

“Our job as a public university is to create access and opportunities for our students to learn and grow, and in turn they give back to the communities they come from. Right here, UConn Hartford provides a beacon of hope, opportunity, and transformation for our students,” said Mark Overmyer-Velázquez, UConn Hartford’s campus dean and chief administrative officer.

UConn Hartford is a federally designated Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution and, with about 20% of its population identifying as Hispanic, it is on the threshold of reaching Hispanic Serving Institution status as an emerging HSI. It also has a rich history of engagement with the city in service, academics, and research.

UConn Hartford students can take classes in more than 36 academic departments and can pursue 10 undergraduate programs and advanced degrees fully in Hartford through the School of Business, Neag School of Education, School of Public Policy, and School of Social Work. They may also elect to transfer to Storrs with the credits they have earned.

“They have the ability to do all of that at the scale of a small liberal arts college, with all of the rich benefits that UConn offers as a Research 1 university,” Overmyer-Velázquez said.

UConn’s presence in Hartford also includes the School of Law in the West End; the main campus at 10 Prospect St. and the nearby School of Social Work at 38 Prospect St.; UConn Health’s Health Disparities Institute at 241 Main St.; and the Graduate Business Learning Center, Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation’s BUILD Hartford course, both at Constitution Plaza.

The newest UConn presence in Hartford is a big one: The University recently opened its new Community Intersections & Innovation Space for research and academic uses at 229 Trumbull St, also known as Hartford 21 (H21), very close to the student housing location.

UConn is leasing space in that office building to house lecture halls, academic centers, classrooms, and faculty offices, providing opportunities to partner on support for community engagement, and on research projects and research grants.

UConn moved its campus from West Hartford to its current location in 2017, and has worked since then to position it as a centerpiece of a thriving capital city by bringing people downtown to learn, live, and support the regional economy.

The University has also significantly bolstered the wrap-around student services available at UConn Hartford and other regional campuses. They include increasing medical and mental health care, adding Husky Harvest food pantries, helping students establish and expand clubs, boosting on-site career services, and other academic and social programs to help build a sense of community and support student success.

Connecticut State House of Representatives Speaker Matt Ritter, D-Hartford (’07 LAW), noted at the recent reception that after the pandemic, many companies vacated their city office spaces as more employees worked remotely. Student housing like UConn’s planned units are a critical evolution in the vitality of those communities, he said.

“This is such a big deal because of what it’s going to lead to,” Ritter said. “This is going to be what UConn is about: UConn changes the lives of young people and communities that it impacts.”