As the College approached the third millennium, Marian Hall faced additional challenges. This was apparent on September 16, 1995, when the floor in the Marian Hall foyer shook for three minutes and buckled and the building was evacuated. When the Boston Fire Department responded they examined the floor for damage. The building was intact, except for the tiles.

 

Eventually, it was determined that the tile floor buckled due to its age. This initiated a move to create a new student union in addition to Marian Hall. On May 18, 2001, the College received approval from the Boston Redevelopment Agency (BRA) to allow for certain modifications with respect to the scheduling of projects under the Emmanuel 2000 Institutional Master Plan (IMP) that included the construction of the 41,231 square feet Jean Yawkey Center, in order to accommodate the admission of male undergraduates to Emmanuel College for the 2001-2002 Academic Year.

 

On the first floor, the Center contained  the Maureen Murphy Wilkens Atrium, student meeting rooms, a food court, recreational and fitness spaces. The second floor contained a glass seating area that looks out over the College's main quad (designed by Carol R. Johnson Associates c. 2002-2004), the Athletic Department Offices, and a new gymnasium with bleacher seating for up to 1,400 people. This floor also held the College bookstore, a commuters' lounge, personal offices and classrooms. The third floor contained a booster room, a Board of Trustees meeting room and access to Nursing Department classrooms in Marian Hall.  A parking lot accommodating over 100 spaces was constructed under the new gymnasium.

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The architectural firm of Goody Clancy and Associates and the construction management firm of Corcoran Jennison were hired to develop the plans for the building. It was constructed by Walsh Brothers Construction Company.

 

The new student union was named after Jean Yawkey, for her dedication to the community through such projects as the Red Cross, the Jimmy Fund/Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, the Tara Hall Home and School for Boys and the Family Inn in Brookline, Massachusetts.

 

 The Jean Yawkey Center was dedicated on October 1, 2004. It was described as the living room of Emmanuel College's campus, and operated twenty (20) hours a day.