The University's signature buildings are in bad shape. In New Cabell Hall, the chairs are screwed into the ground, making them impossible to move and arrange for special class sizes. And in next-door Rouss Hall, the heating and cooling systems are so old that when it's hot outside, it's even hotter inside.
But the Office of the Dean of College has come up with a plan it hopes will fix those problems and modernize the aging buildings, some of which are over 100 years old.
The Dean's Office is asking each academic department in the College to tell it what classrooms, laboratories, hallways and other spaces need new paint, updated repairs or better furniture. The requests are due on Sept. 26.
College Dean Edward L. Ayers described the new program, which is being tried out this fall for the first time, as a way to improve communication between faculty and Facilities Management, the University department in charge of all renovations. Though Ayers said that Facilities Management has done a good job in the past of taking care of reported problems, some departments do not even bother to contact the Facilities Management office, assuming that other departments in their buildings will do it. For example, in New Cabell Hall, over a half-dozen departments hold classes and each one deals with the same deficiencies.
The Dean's Office plans to ask for requests from departments twice a year, according to a memo sent out to all department chairs and administrators.
Ayers cited the age of the College's buildings as the reason for their declining condition. Cocke Hall and Rouss Hall are over 100 years old, and New Cabell Hall is over 50 years old.
"We have the great blessing and the great burden of having so many historic buildings," Ayers said.
Prof. Michael Levenson, the chairman of the English department, which holds many of its classes in New Cabell Hall, said he was enthusiastic about the College's new program. He added that improving the condition of the buildings is "important to classroom achievement and important to the morale of the University."
Prof. Robert Fatton Jr., the chairman of the government and foreign affairs department, agreed that the College is on the right track but is skeptical about where funding for renovations will come from.
"I don't know if the University will be able to cover the expense," Fatton said.
The memo to department chairs specifically noted "The Dean's Office does not have sufficient funding to meet all your requests."
Ayers said that his office's call for renovation requests does not mean all renovations will be funded. He plans to take care of small projects, such as painting doors and walls, improving furniture and equipment, and sealing leaks with money from the Office of the Dean, the Provost's Office and Facilities Management. Larger projects, however, will have to be paid for with state or private funds.
There isn't much money coming from the state for renovations, though. According to Jo Lawson, who oversees renovation projects for Facilities Management, building projects are "not well funded at all" by the state.
She added that Virginia's budget impasse last spring has further limited her department's finances.
Ayers said he thinks the state should pay more for building refurbishment.
"The trick is to do the most with what we have in the meantime," he said.
The Dean's Office's memo to departments also asked departments to use their own money to help with renovations, but Fatton said department funds are usually used for other expenditures, such as research and travel.
"We need the money for other things, so I'll put up with the conditions," he said.
Ayers listed New Cabell Hall as the College's top priority, both because of the building's poor condition and its high level of student traffic. Ayers mentioned Cocke Hall and Rouss Hall as other top priorities.
The Dean's Office began improving the appearance of those three buildings this summer by painting hallways, doors and offices.
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