Erin McCarthy, associate professor in the School of Communication and Culture, stood beside a pile of boxes nearly reaching the ceiling to unpack.
McCarthy moved into her new office in the 33 E. Ida B. Wells building just before the semester began. She was one of 18 full-time faculty members who moved from three floors of the historic 624 S. Michigan Ave. with its sweeping views to mostly windowless offices in 33 E. Ida B. Wells on the corner of Wabash.
Faculty were instructed to have their offices cleared out by Dec. 19 but did not have access to their new spaces until Jan. 21, only six days before the start of the spring semester two weeks ago.
“I can’t say it was a hardship, but there were days I would have loved to come in and just gotten stuff done,” said McCarthy. “I was used to being busy and seeing students and staff, so I’m really happy to be here.”
Interim President and CEO Jerry Tarrer told faculty at the All College Retreat in mid-August last year that the 624 S. Michigan Ave. building would be sold as a part of the college’s 12-month priority plan, the Chronicle previously reported.
McCarthy said that the college was responsible for providing and moving the boxes of faculty belongings from the buildings. She had access to a dolly to bring the furniture that she wanted.
Ann Kalayil, associate vice president of Facilities Planning and Management, said her staff worked with the school directors to discuss the overall needs and identified spaces on campus to move faculty.
McCarthy said that student workers helped her with the “labor intensive” move and “made a huge difference.”
“To be without an office for a month, that was news to me because I use my office a lot,” McCarthy said.
Facilities spent Jan. 13 through Jan. 17 to move all boxes into the new faculty offices and then allowed faculty access on Jan. 21.
Sean Andrews, associate professor in the School of Communication and Culture, has had different offices in 624 S. Michigan over the last 13 years and said that the move was “very inconvenient timing” right before the start of winter break.
Andrews said that he had to hire movers and a truck to come and move his furniture because “the college wouldn’t do it.”
“All that said, the staff of the School of Communication and Culture made it as smooth as it could be,” Andrews said through email.
He “especially applauds” Leigh Plunkett, administrative assistant in the School of Communication and Culture for her “organization and communication through the process.”
“The school directors were responsible for communicating with faculty. Faculty had access to their new space since the beginning of the year, but technically painting, shampooing carpet and moving and installing furniture were all completed by Jan. 21,” Kalayil said.
Andrews said that the sale of the building without plans in place to move the additional amenities in the building “feels like a bad sign.”
“My first thought was that the college must be in serious financial distress to sell the building at a time when the value of commercial property is so depressed,” Andrews said. “I know that selling this building is part of the overall master plan, but that was supposed to be done in a context where there was serious fundraising around building a new academic center for faculty and to house the library.”
McCarthy, who was the interim chair of the former communications department for over two years, said that she was “ lonely over at 624” and that “there were very few people there.”
“I’ve really appreciated for years and years being on Michigan Avenue and when it was a full house of people over there I loved it,” McCarthy said. “I got a taste of this when I was chair and I really like being around people.”
McCarthy, who has had offices in the 624 S. Michigan Ave. building since 2001, said that the building has been less populated since the COVID-19 pandemic happened in 2020.
“They didn’t come in as often for sure,” McCarthy said. “It wasn’t a hub of a department.”
Most of the faculty offices in the building were part of the former Humanities, History and Social Sciences department, which is now part of the School of Communication and Culture.
“The process was pretty easy,” said Rob Watkins, associate professor in the School of Communication and Culture
“I was in the 624 building since I arrived at Columbia in August 2006,” Watkins said. “I will miss the view and the way you could see Grant park and what was happening there – like when they were setting up for Lollapalooza, the NASCAR race, the Chicago Marathon, and most memorably, the Obama election night celebration in 2008.”
In addition to classrooms, faculty offices and the library, the building was also home to Columbia’s bookstore and the Honors Lounge.
“We are still working on finding space for the library and in the process of renovating space for the new Honor’s Lounge,” Kalayil told the Chronicle.
Copy edited by Matt Brady
Resumen en Español:
Por la venta del edificio de 624 S. Michigan Ave., Columbia les dijo a los profesores que estuvieran fuera de sus oficinas en el edificio por el 19 de diciembre, en anticipación de la reubicación. Aunque aún no se ha conseguido un nuevo lugar para la biblioteca del edificio, los profesores no recibieron acceso a sus nuevas oficinas, en el edificio de 33 E. Ida B. Wells Dr., hasta el 21 de enero.
Resumen por Sofía Oyarzún
Texto editado por Doreen Abril Albuerne Rodriguez
