New spaces, new faces defining IU's presence in Richmond

By Jayne Spencer

Happy residents of Hayes Hall took part in a ceremonial cake cutting honoring the re-opening of the building this spring. From left to right, they are M.J. Henry, director of the Teaching and Learning Center; Ruth Mills, general manager of WCTV; G. Lynn Hufford, director of library and media services; and Joanne Rains, dean of the nursing division at IU East.

When IU East’s Springwood Hall was dedicated Nov. 10, 1999, the 58,000-square-foot building completed the quad area of the Richmond campus. The date also was close to the upcoming 25th anniversary of the opening of East’s first campus building, Whitewater Hall, which was re-dedicated in ceremonies last year.

But that wasn’t the end to the building growth at Richmond’s 200-acre campus of rolling hills. This semester, the campus and community came together to celebrate the re-opening to Hayes Hall and the expanded opportunities inherent in that renovation project.

Enrollment on campus has increased by 6.4 percent from last spring semester’s figures, the highest enrollment percentage increase among the IU campuses. The number of credit hours also rose at IU East, a 4.4 percent increase from last spring.

“The campus is excited with the increase,” said IU East Chancellor David Fulton. “While we haven’t seen detailed statistics, I expect the campus’ efforts to better meet student needs with the creation of the Student Success Team and improve customer service have impacted retention of continuing students. The campus marketing effort has also worked to better communicate the benefits of an IU East education.”

Fulton also said that IU East will continue to look for new and better ways to bring IU quality to the residents of east central Indiana and western Ohio.

Enrollment in the Purdue University programs on the IU East campus has remained consistent with fall 2000.