Hart Hall is ready to undergo more change for the 2003-2004 school year. With funding from the Lilly Grant, a new project is still in its early planning stages but may be underway by sometime next year.
“The Lilly Grant has an established portion of dollars to go toward resident hall renovations,” said Danielle Booth, director of student life and Hart Hall resident director. “We will be focusing on improvements to enhance spiritual development. It won't be just in lobby space alone.”
Each lobby in the dorm, excluding the main lobby, will undergo extensive cosmetic repair. However, these changes are not solely for aesthetic pleasure. The changes are intended to encourage Milligan's goal of community and provide more study areas on campus.
Senior resident assistant Amanda Diefendorf is among the R.A.s that came up with some of the ideas for the lobbies.
“We basically walked around the dorm starting on first floor and gave our ideas for what would be a good way to decorate,” said Diefendorf. “We were also trying to work in the idea of community. So we decided that making each floor lobby different would help add to people doing things off of their floor.”
Each lobby will have a different purpose and theme.
“First floor lobby is going to still have the soda machines and such, and it will be set up with a few couches and chairs but have a TV mounted to the wall to allow for exercise. The second floor we felt would use more open study space. So we felt clumps of chairs or even tables like SUB7 would work well. The third floor is all about open space for lots of people to hang out it, mostly because the floor is made up of freshmen,” said Diefendorf.
The small study rooms near the lobbies will also undergo changes. The small study room on first floor would be primarily used for group study or Bible studies. Second floor’s study room will hopefully have a television as well as a DVD or VCR player and could be used as a TV room. Third floor's room will be another study room with more allowance for individual study as well as some storage space for R.A.s and dorm council.
Hart Hall will not be the only dorm to have new renovations however.
“Changes will occur in Hart, Sutton, and Webb. Some of these jobs will include minor structural changes, carpentry, new wiring and will need to be done by contractors. Some may be done by staff,” said Booth. “We’re still in the early stages of planning.”
Booth is looking forward to the new changes both physical and social.
“I think the most significant change is that we are trying to add areas in which students can commune together, growing with one another in the Lord,” said Booth. “Right now, some fellowship may be stifled by the mere fact there are not appropriate spaces for students to gather.”