Alumni Hall is one of the 30 Residence Halls on the campus of the University of Notre Dame and one of the 16 male dorms. It is located on South Quad adjacent to "Main Circle", across from the law school building. Because of Alumni's central location and boisterous reputation, residents fondly refer to the hall as the "Center of the Universe". Together with other historic structures of the university, it is on the National Register of Historic Places.
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History
Alumni Hall was constructed in 1931 at the same time as rival Dillon Hall. At the time, it provided a border for the southern edge of campus. The hall was so named in honor of the University's loyal alumni and was intended to be a home for alumni returning to campus. Alumni was the first dorm not to be named after prominent Notre Dame figures and deceased presidents, and is the only dorm on campus not named for a person or family. Alumni was originally configured to hold 212 students. It was built in Collegiate Gothic style by architects Charles Maginnis and Timothy Walsh.
Alumni was the first residence hall on campus and one of the first buildings in the state of Indiana to have an electric elevator (no longer in commission). The hall's unique architecture includes gargoyles up top and stone carvings of everything from Madonna and Child (north side chapel entrance), saints (Sts. Thomas Aquinas and Bonaventure in the courtyard), dogs (Clashmore Mike,, one of the original mascots of the football team), to Knute Rockne (east side). On the south side of the building, facing South Bend, is a carving of a college graduate known as Joe College who is looking towards leaving college for the real world. The hall's chapel is dedicated to St. Charles Borromeo, the patron saint of then-president Fr. Charles O'Donnell, CSC.
In the 1940s, when Navy trainees took over the residence, Alumni's residents squeezed in with one another, turning all singles into doubles. The space was so cramped that Dave Condon '49, later a sportswriter for the Chicago Tribune, wrote in Scholastic that "when someone entered by the front door, it necessitated someone else leaving by the rear egress."
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Traditions
The mascot of alumni hall is the Dawg, in honor of Clashmore Mike, the original Notre Dame mascot donated by Knute Rockne that was subsequently replaced by the Leprechaun. Alumni's close-knit community and tradition for rambunctious behavior likens them to a traditional fraternity; so much so that the dorm is represented by and displays Greek letters. These letters are Delta-Omega-Gamma, which spells out the name of the alumni mascot, a dog (the only time it is not spelled out as "Dawg"). They display their letters three times a year: during Freshman Orientation (Frosh-O), during Alumni-Dillon Rivalry Week, and during Alumni's secretive Wake Week (shrouded in mystery) in the spring.
The Alumni Wake, started in 1983, was inspired by traditional Irish wakes with late night partying. The first Wake involved a handmade wooden coffin, flowers raided from a cemetery trash heap, and a procession. It was intended to be a fancy event, with decorations that turned sections of the dorm into Dublin streets. In subsequent years the Wake became a rowdy and alcohol-infused celebration surrounded by bizarre traditions, one of which involved Rector George Rozum, CSC, '61, '80MSA, being carried into the hall's dance inside a coffin. The Wake was traditionally held in the basement of Alumni Hall, but with stricter rules from the administration the Wake was moved to other locations around campus. From the original Irish Wake sprang the Wake Week of today, a week shrouded in celebration and mystery. Though the administration has cracked down on the celebration, the Wake retains much of its original spirit and mystery.
Alumni Hall has a long-lasting rivalry with Dillon Hall, with which it shares a courtyard. Though Dillon contains a larger number of inhabitants, Alumni residents refer to Dillon as the "little brother". In the 1970s and '80s, residents were engaged in the "Window Wars" by throwing golf balls from the courtyard at Dillon's windows at 3 in the morning after Dillon initiated the conflict.
On Fridays of home football weekends, Alumni puts on an activity known as "quad dancing". At exactly 12:31 p.m., residents charge out of the south quad doors dressed in bizarre costumes. They proceed to dance rambunctiously on South Quad for slightly less than ten minutes, then return inside and continue on with the day.
Notable residents
- Richard Edmund Lyng '40 - former Secretary of Agriculture under President Ronald Reagan
- Thomas Fiore Warner '68 - Retired Chairman and CEO of Del Monte International.
- James Berges '69 - President of Emerson Electric
- James Creagan '62 - President of John Cabot University
- Rev. William Beauchamp, CSC '75 - Former President of the University of Portland
- Jerome Bettis - former professional football player, Pittsburgh Steelers, current sports commentator, Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee
- Brian Casey (academic) '85 - 17th President, Colgate University
- Thom Browne '88 - fashion designer, founder and head designer, Thom Browne
- Rick Mirer '93 - former professional football player in the National Football League
- Michael Aubrey '00 - co-founder of Caldera Capital Partners
- Jeff Samardzija '07 - professional baseball player, San Francisco Giants
- Tom Zbikowski '08 - professional football player, Indianapolis Colts
- Tim Abromaitis '11 - University of Notre Dame men's basketball player
- Harrison Smith '11 - professional football player, Minnesota Vikings
- Louis Nix - "Irish Chocolate," professional football player, Jacksonville Jaguars
- Chris Watt '14 - professional football player
Gallery
External links
- Alumni Hall website
- Alumni Hall profile
- Notre Dame Magazine - Alumni Hall Portrait
- Notre Dame Magazine - "Rozum the rector reaches record for residency"
References
Source of article : Wikipedia
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