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Alumni Review
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Hamilton Alumni Review
315-859-4648 (fax) |
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 The Kirner-Johnson Building Makes a Grand EntranceDon't believe that nonsense about the newly expanded Kirner-Johnson Building being completely different from the original. The Red Pit will still be red. As for everything else, well, see for yourself. Larger, light-filled, environmentally efficient and outfitted with cutting-edge teaching technology, the 2008 incarnation of KJ opened for business in August to rave reviews, concluding the first phase of a $37-million overhaul that is scheduled for completion next summer. It adds about 40,000 square feet of space to the original building, opened in 1968 as the hub of Kirkland College. Home to the College's social science departments as well as the Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center, the Nesbitt-Johnston Writing Center and the Oral Communication Center, the new KJ is "everything we in the social sciences hoped for," says Professor of Economics Paul Hagstrom, who served as a faculty coordinator during planning stages of the renovation. The building's most arresting feature is the airy, sun-drenched commons that greets pedestrians as they arrive via Martin's Way. It is "not so much a walk-through as a destination in itself," says Professor of Economics Christophre Georges, who also was involved in planning the renovations. Students frequent the commons throughout the day and night and find it "a good place to come and study," says Erich Romero '12, but they also find it an inviting place for conversation. And how do the bookish and the talkative coexist without glares and shushes? The secret's in the water. Four small waterfalls at the inner point of the commons provide just enough white noise to encourage conversation while acoustically insulating those who prefer to study. When the system is turned off for maintenance, "students start leaving," Georges says. Page 1 of 2
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BUILDING HIGHLIGHTS Design & Environment  Teaching, Learning & Technology |
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