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HOUGHTON - What took months of preparation has become a reality at Michigan Technological University.

Tuesday, the university unveiled the new CN Rail Transportation Education Center on the third floor of the Grover C. Dillman Hall on Michigan Tech's campus.

With the help of a donation of $250,000 from Canadian National Railway, the new center has been made possible.

"This is a really big thing for us in the rail transportation program," said Dr. Pasi Lautala, research assistant professor in the Michigan Tech Transportation Institute.

The rail program at Michigan Tech was born in 2007.

"With the generous donation from CN, we are here today to celebrate the grand opening," Lautala said. "With this donation, we were able to create a student education center along with a technology hub we can use for education technologies."

The center boasts two rooms featuring computers and books for learning purposes, and the walls lining the hallway feature projects by the Railroad Engineering and Activities Club at Michigan Tech.

"I have to thank the REAC students," Lautala said. "This is kind of their new home and they worked really hard over the last six months, first designing the rooms and setting them all up for the opening ceremonies."

John Hatch, Greg Hunter and Laura Hess, all members of REAC, walked around the center Tuesday looking at computers, pamphlets and books.

"It's pretty awesome," Hatch said.

The students have been working over the last few months to pull the center together in time for the grand opening.

"This has been months in the making," Hunter said.

CN is one of the largest railroads in North America, spokesman Patrick Waldron said, and by itself, it is the fifth largest railroad in the United States, also known as a class one.

"It connects the east coast of North America to the west coast of the Gulf Coast," he said.

The partnership between CN and Michigan Tech was formed last year, Waldron said.

Stacey Kukkonen can be reached at skukkonen@mininggazette.com.