On publication day, the newsroom computers are lined with designers and editors sweating over AP Stylebooks, Oxford commas and hanging orphans. The stress levels rise and fall, but the team is bonded by the need to meet deadlines.
Our photo wall of memories hangs above the couch where students banter and stick quotes on the magnetic board. On Wednesday nights, we discuss campus issues and how to best share student voices.
This all happens in a simple, windowless room, but it’s our home.
In January, the Department of Communication will be scattered across open rooms and empty time slots during the library renovations. Despite how needed these repairs are, we can’t help but worry about how our culture will change after this transition.
There are too many questions being asked among the Mitchell Center students, and our professors don’t have all the answers.
During phase one in January, the west side of the Mitchell Center and the library basement will be closed off. This includes over two-thirds of the faculty offices, the main office, three classrooms, the video studio, the newsroom and the computer lab.
The computer lab is the hub of our department. It’s where students correct photos, cut footage and design websites.
As of now, we don’t know where the lab will be relocated.
We’ve heard faculty offices could be moved to University Residences North and South, the same dorms that were deemed unfit for fraternity and sorority life living. We’ve also heard the video studio could end up in the Communications building on west campus. Otherwise, the rest of the details feel up in the air.
Phase two will begin next fall. The east side of the Mitchell Center and the second floor of the library will shut down. When that time comes, project managers must decide how they will work around the radio station and potential FCC fines.
We understand the ventilation systems and the west entrance are in desperate need of renovating. We can’t help but be disheartened that our department will be separated for the next year and a half.
When our faculty offices are moved into URS, we won’t be able to say hi to our professors down the hall from us. Passersby won’t wander into the newsroom. Our editors won’t be able to work so easily on the paper in between classes.
When finals week ends, fraternities, Warner Hall and the Mitchell Center will all have new homes. While Warner Hall receieved an increase in funds, the library, a space that serves students throughout the year, was cut back. Why?
It’s October, and time is running out for these answers.
We ask project managers to continue to shed light on the library renovation plans. Don’t keep our department in the dark.
Next semester, communication students will need to make a conscious effort to recruit others and keep the culture going in its fragmented state. Our programs have grown so much in these past few years, and we can’t let it go to waste.
The Mitchell Center is more than a building. We must remember that students and professors are the heart of the Communications Department.
