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Hallowed, Hollow Lincoln Hallways

For the first time in nearly a century, no regular classes are being held in Lincoln Hall.

When the bell rings to signal the end of a class, the corridors of Lincoln Hall are now eerily silent. No throng of students filing down the staircase from the theater nor emptying out of the classroom.

Fall 2008 was supposed to kick off the long-overdue renovations of Lincoln Hall. But due to budget battles in Springfield, the $55.1 million remodeling is again on hold. "Maybe in January or late May," says Matthew Tomaszewski, LAS's assistant dean for facilities and space. "I believe that's the next time the legislature votes on capital projects. Everyone really thought it would happen this year, and I mean everyone, which is why the campus decided to move classes."

Some 350 class sections are normally held in Lincoln Hall each semester, according to Jen Themanson, the associate registrar for facility management and scheduling at U of I. That means that more than 17,000 students a semester, or 34,000 a year, would normally be filling Lincoln Hall's classrooms. For any given semester, the campus starts planning classroom space nine months out. Changes of this magnitude take years of preparation to ensure a space for every class; thus the campus elected to think optimistically and prepared for a Lincoln Hall that would be out of service beginning this fall.

A few graduate seminars are still being held there as will final exams, and in the evenings, the building is still available for meetings by registered student organizations. More than 800 such events will be held in Lincoln Hall during the year. Administrative offices for the college as well as for the departments of communications, political science, and sociology are still there, as are the faculty offices.

To make some progress toward renovation even without essential state funds, Tomaszewski says the campus is planning on proceeeding with work that falls under the rubric of deferred maintenance, such as tuckpointing and replacing gutters, to prevent the further deterioriation of this historic building. Repairs to the slate roof may also begin, if feasible, given the extensive internal work that will later be done. These repairs are the campus's contribution to the costs of remodeling as declared in the U of I's Board of Trustees minutes from January 2007.

Regardless of when funding is released for Lincoln Hall renovations, no regular classes will be held there until the work is complete. Thus, it is likely that an entire class of U of I students will pass through the University without rubbing the nose on Lincoln's bust for good luck on their way to class in Lincoln Hall Theater. Not a great loss, but it is a tradition that like the renovations is suspended.

Read more about the Lincoln Hall renovations.

By Holly Korab
September 2008