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Quad reborn
as Honors Village
When Honors Village mentor Courtney Sword returned to Bagwell residence hall for her junior year, she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. “I lived in Bagwell two years ago, when there was no elevator or air-conditioning,” she said. “It just looks completely different – it’s amazing!”
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| An artist’s rendering of the new Honors Village Commons. |
Sword and the other 150 students who have chosen to participate in the Honors Village, a partnership between University Housing and the University Honors Program, are reaping the benefits of a renovation and construction project that began last December. Bagwell, Becton and Berry, the residence halls known as the “Quad,” were completely overhauled in nine months, and the Honors Village Commons, a new building that will serve as a community center for the village, is scheduled to open at the end of October.
The $18 million project was undertaken primarily to update buildings that were constructed in the 1920s. Air conditioning, elevators and new fire suppression systems were added to each of the three residence halls, along with new drywall, furnishings, and hall carpeting. An older building – known as the Quad C-Store – which housed an RA office and a C-Store, was torn down and the new Honors Commons will take its place. The Commons will still house the Quad’s 24-hour desk and student mailboxes, but will boast a larger C-store, computer lab, staff offices and meeting space.
Not a bad upgrade for a village that’s only three years old. The Honors Program was developed five years ago for students who wanted a vibrant artistic and academically enriching college experience. Bagwell, currently the only Honors Village residence hall, is a co-ed facility, with halls split in half by gender. There are traditional RA staff in the hall, but there are also 10 Resident Mentors who work with the first-year students.
There is also a senior level Honors Village Fellow, who serves as a community TA, coordinating activities and a one hour pass/fail honors program course. Tommy Sebastian, who has been in the Honors Program since its inception, is this year’s fellow, and is pleased that his community has a permanent home.
“Being able to interact with students outside the classroom and engage them in discussion about local authors and artists (main topics in the Honors Program courses) helps instill an appreciation for how vibrant the Raleigh community really is,” he says.
Katrin Baker, associate director of the University Honors Program, is thrilled about the renovation and hopes it will strengthen the Honors Village.
“We started our first year of the Honors Village with just one floor of Bagwell being occupied,” Baker said. “We’re finding that as the village grows, the interest grows, and we hope that having an attractive and convenient living space will only enhance the village’s appeal.”
Posted Sept. 16, 2005
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