Faculty and staff have started their move into Lindner Hall, Elon University's newest academic building, as work crews this week continue exterior work on what will be the “greenest” facility on campus upon completion.
The building received its certificate of occupancy in mid May, construction officials said, but professors and other university employees only started an active relocation within the past week. The building will be fully completed and ready for class in the fall.
Environmental sustainability is a key component in both the construction and operation of the facility. Seventy-five percent of construction waste is being recycled, much of the building is made of steel and tile that contain recycled material, and photovoltaic solar power cells will help generate power on site, among other features.
And because it was made with sustainability in mind, Lindner Hall lacks a “new building smell” common in structures with paint and other compounds that aren’t as sensitive to the environment, said Elaine Durr, Elon’s sustainability coordinator.
“That may be the first thing people notice indicating that it’s sustainable,” Durr said. “Day-to-day use? I don’t know that anyone will consciously know that it’s different.”
Carl and Martha Lindner of Cincinnati, Ohio, made a $2.5 million gift to Elon in the hopes of inspiring others to support the university.
The building will be the new administrative home of Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences, and the home of the history and geography, and the sociology and anthropology departments. A spacious first-floor reading room, high-tech classrooms, a computer lab, faculty offices and space for student-faculty mentoring are will be furnished in the coming weeks.
On Thursday, a smattering of faculty could be found inside, unpacking boxes and arranging furniture. Ashley Hairston and Janet Myers, colleagues in the Department of English, will work together in a new interdisciplinary office suite on the east end of the second floor. Hairston directs the Center for Law and Humanities. Myers serves as the coordinator of national and international fellowships.
Both said they are thrilled about students soon interacting with each other in a wing that will house their respective offices, along with faculty for undergraduate research and the Honors Program.
“The only bummer is the actual moving!” Myers joked of the 25 boxes she brought with her from her old office in Alamance Building. “It was a lot.”
Hairston said he was equally excited to relocate from Alamance.
“When you think about having these offices together,“ he said, “it’s going to be a great place for students to come.”
