The Ernest Gruening Building, dedicated in May 1972, is an eight-story, 72,000-square-foot structure and the first building on campus more than three stories tall. It was designed to resemble the FBI office building in Washington, D.C.

The Gruening Building houses the College of Liberal Arts and the School of Education as well as classrooms and department offices.

Ernest Gruening was born in New York City in 1886. He graduated from Harvard Medical School in 1912 but never practiced medicine. He discovered a love for journalism and joined the Boston American as a reporter immediately after graduation. From 1938 to 1942, Gruening was a member of the Alaska International Highway Commission. In 1939, Roosevelt appointed Gruening territorial governor of Alaska. He served 14 years as governor and made statehood his personal campaign.