The Campaign to Save Ball Hall

The boxes have been ordered for the offices that will soon occupy the first floor. The Office of Alumni and Family Relations, Office of Development, Office of Admissions, Office of Financial Aid, and Office of Grants Administration are slated to make their move the first week of May. That means my fellow blogger Pete (a member of the admissions staff) needs to get packing. I, on the other hand, have no packing to do. Communications stays in its suite on the ground floor. Though we only had to worry about moving once (the alumni and family relations, development, and grants administration offices had to move to the ground floor temporarily so that the first floor of Ball could be renovated) we’re still working to give our space more of a “lived in” appearance. You know, artwork on the walls, shelving in place, etc. It certainly does take time. I’m looking forward to seeing what the rest of the Division of College Advancement, Enrollment Management, and Marketing does with their permanent spaces. But, I’ll give them some time to get settled in first.

-Tanya

Old combs and soda bottles, square nails, and 20^th century ceramic jugs: just some of the items that have been recovered since the Ball Hall renovation began. I wonder what things will be found in Ball Hall 100 years from now to indicate what this generation was like. Will a CD or DVD be found in a wall long after the technology has become obsolete? What about an iPod? A hair straightener (my must-have hair tamer)? A JanSport backpack? A lacrosse stick? Or maybe a Red Bull can? Will the building still resemble Ball Hall as I will come to know it once renovation is complete? What will change over time? It’s really too bad that I won’t be alive to see it. I mean I’d be 128 years old, the oldest living alumna, no doubt. It’s a good thing that future generations will have an opportunity to look back in College publications and research Ball Hall online. We staff rely on alumni to tell us what Ball Hall was like before we arrived on campus. Those recollections have been so valuable in teaching us about Ball Hall’s past. So, please keep the “Ball Hall Memories” coming.

- Tanya