2.3 Stephen C. Hall Building
The Writing and Communication Program headquarters is located in the historic Stephen C. Hall Building (named for the major donor supporting the renovation). Though plans for renovation began in 2007, political and economic delays ensued. Construction began in January 2012, and the building opened for classes in January 2013. Built in 1924, the small building (approximately eleven thousand square feet) was largely rebuilt from the ground up. The renovation retained (and, when necessary, replaced) the brick exterior, replaced the asphalt shingles with historic slate, created large skylights, replaced the crumbling windows with historically accurate ones, and installed entirely new systems (including the HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and security systems). Many of the historic features of this LEED Gold building were saved.
The Writing and Communication Program worked closely with the architects (Smith Dalia Architects of Atlanta, known for work in historic preservation) in designing the renovation of the Hall Building. Three spaces in the Hall Building—and equipment and furnishings within those spaces—are examples of the Writing and Communication Program and the architects working together to create spaces that reflect our programmatic philosophy:
- A Communication Commons serves up to seventy-five people—for film screenings, poster sessions, guest speakers, mini-conferences, performances, and, currently on a pilot basis, composition courses with strong film or visual emphases.
- Two laptop classrooms function independently and/or collectively, connected by a thirty-foot floor-to-ceiling accordion whiteboard, which, when open, allows the two rooms to become one large room serving up to fifty people. Each room has dual projectors and movable tables and rolling chairs, encouraging re-groupings and allowing instructors to organize the space to reflect their individual pedagogies and the exigencies of particular lessons and activities.
- Areas designed to promote community and collaboration include (a) instructor offices with walls high enough to ensure privacy and low enough to create a sense of community and (b) areas designed for group interaction, from conversation and brainstorming through to final production.