Today marks the official opening of the Student Union with
a ribbon cutting ceremony, so it’s not too much of a leap to wonder what another
official opening way back in September, 1973, was like. Imagine opening the
doors to a completely new campus! So much work had gone into it: locating the
land, the careful planning, and then, finally, construction. After seven years
located in downtown Champaign, there must have been great fanfare when the permanent
campus opened for classes, right? Turns out, not so much.
No ribbon cutting. No speeches. Things were pretty laid
back.
The new Parkland campus was opened to the public for viewing
on Sunday, September 9. Perhaps it was because
campus was only 75% complete – construction continued as classes began – that
led to the decision to keep the event low key. From an article of the Courier, dated September 10:
The open house was unstructured
with no speeches or ribbon cutting formalities. Persons of all ages roamed
through the sprawling building at their leisure.
A special supplement to the Sunday, September 9, News Gazette read, “The campus, with its
steep roofs, sloping hallways and arched windows, has been compared to anything
from an Illinois farm complex to a Swiss ski lodge. No one calls it
traditional.” Reception was largely positive. Members of the community were
curious to see the end result of what had, for various reasons, been a
controversial venture. Most approved the home-like atmosphere and were
impressed by the new technologies they had seen, but others expressed concern
over the expense. One visitor commented that there seemed to be more leisure space
than classrooms. In addition to informal tours of the building, hands on
activities were also available, according to the Courier article, “In the
computer areas you could try out the keypunch machines and take home a data
card as a souvenir.“
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| President William Staerkel leads a tour of Parkland College, ca 1974 |
Don’t let the casual approach fool you; a message from Dr. Staerkel,
which was included on the front page of a special edition of
Prospectus, speaks to the pride with
which he and the Board of Trustees presented the new complex:
Replacing the old, makeshift
quarters, as sparkling new campus is designed to provide the latest conveniences
for learning and instruction, and is unsurpassed in the nation for its utility
and planning. You have the honor and privilege of being the first to occupy
these new quarters.
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| Here’s an undated early picture of the campus. Can
you see where the Union now stands ? |
In a way, it seems as if the official opening of the Student Union makes up for one that didn't take place, officially, 41 years ago, and it makes Parkland "sparkling new" all over again.
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Wayback Wednesday is a feature of the
Parkland College Archives. If you have ideas you'd like to see in future posts, email us at
archives@parkland.edu. The Archives is open to faculty, staff, students and the public by appointment.
The second way to add money to your print account is by CREDIT CARD! This can be done anywhere through the Library webpage at www.parkland.edu/library/ and click on "PC Print System" near the bottom of the page. Scroll down to "Add Credit to Your Account" and follow the prompts to add money securely via Paypal (Paypal account not required). 
