As students clambered off buses, drove in with freshly minted licenses and trekked down the hill from the dorms, they were welcomed back to campus by an unfamiliar sight: a huge fence barring access to the quad.
This disruption on student pathways is not without cause. Over the summer – and now bleeding into the school year – several campus renovations began. The Cameron Mann Dining Hall (sound-absorbing) ceiling fuzz got a shave, the kitchen added a shiny new hood and the Masters Hall entrance has a fresh coat of paint. The Art Studio will soon boast a new balcony and ceramics studio while the Claudia Boettcher Theatre is getting a deep clean and eventual revamp. Finally, Strayer Hall will be completely remodeled and modernized.
“I’m a firm believer in not spending money, spending the School’s resources, just to be a shiny space,” Laura Danforth, head of school, said. “There’s a current parent, who’s also an alum and also an Emmy Award winning musician, named Kara DioGuardi…and she said, ‘Laura, just don’t make it too glossy. Kids just need to gather and jam together.’”
The Art Studio is the bustling hub for Masters artists to be creative, rest from the hectic school day, and explore passions in visual art. It has been closed off since the beginning of this school year for construction, delayed by the installation of a sprinkler system.
“As our serious art student population has increased dramatically, we needed to increase the amount of studio space they have to pursue their work. They have access to their studios at all hours of the day and weekends, much like students in a college level art program,” Cheryl Hajjar, chair of the upper school art department, said.
Hajjar also explained that the Ceramics Studio will be encapsulated for improved ventilation, cleaning, and functionality. Most of the art room will likely be open to students by mid-September.
“I’m really excited to see the new space,” Nola Hirdt ‘26, who will take her third ceramics course this spring, said. “The old space was really loud, especially when there were three classes in there at once. It will be nice to have the extra and sort of separated space for people and storage.”
Strayer Hall – the cause for the fenced-off quad – will also be getting some love. Previously, Strayer was used for the Department of Performing Arts, athletics and security. Soon, DoPA will have full run of the building, spanning classrooms, offices, and rehearsal spaces across both floors.
“The rooms are being designed so that the space for contemporary bands suits that kind of sound and that kind of music best. The space for classical instrumental, that’s going to be designed a little bit differently,” Curt Ebersole, a performing arts teacher and private lesson coordinator, said.
Ebersole also explained that a rehearsal space, the same size as the CBT stage, will be found on Strayer’s first floor, allowing students to rehearse in Strayer and transfer to the CBT seamlessly.
Strayer is projected to reopen to students by September 2025.
Like Strayer, the CBT is fundamental to DoPA education, performance and student life. The theater has been temporarily shut down due to a leak and consequential mold, but is targeting re-opening before Thanksgiving once the mold is fully remediated.
More extensive renovations to the theater – possibly including altering the pitch and number of seats – are to come sometime in 2025, likely next school year, Danforth said.
Out of student sight, the dining hall kitchen was upgraded as part of the renovations. While most students hardly noticed the change at first, the Brock dining hall staff greatly appreciates the new appliances in the kitchen.
Lee Bergelson, the general manager of the dining hall, said, “We had a brand new exhaust installed…we had some new pieces of equipment, a brand new griddle, and, you know, that stuff was important. It was needed.”
One problem that came with the remodel of the dining hall is a large influx of noise. The old ceiling played an integral role in sound-control, but the new, sound-wave-bouncing ceiling, has the opposite effect.
According to Bergelson and Danforth, sound-absorption paneling and lighting fixtures will be introduced to remedy the issue.
These renovations are overseen by Head of School Laura Danforth, Associate Head for Finance and Operations Andy Schneider, Associate Head of School for Institutional Advancement Seth Marx and Director of Operations Daniel Pereira. Chair of the Department of Performing Arts Jennifer Carnevale and Theater Technical Director Peter Wiley will join the team to work on the CBT.
Funding for campus building projects is primarily pulled from two places: the Our Might campaign and the operating budget. The Our Might campaign has been responsible for dormitory renovations and the Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center, which opened September 2023, and will continue its programming with the Strayer remodel, and close out with the spruce-up CBT next year.
“Change is hard. And I’m just acutely aware of that. I want people to feel really good about their school, but at the end of the day, if we all prioritize our relationships with one another and our learning, facilities are on the back burner,” Danforth said.
