Dedicating Agnes E. Wells Quad Student Residences

The renovated Agnes E. Wells Quad Student Residences was dedicated Sept. 25 during a ceremony that IU President Michael A. McRobbie presided over. 

In 2015, the IU Board of Trustees approved the Wells Quad renovation project with a budget of $30 million. It features a patio and dining opportunities such as a branch of the popular Kirkwood Avenue institution Nick’s English Hut. Wells Quad houses a science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) learning community for students in related majors.

The buildings in Wells Quad have histories. Memorial Hall was dedicated in 1925, and it was the first women’s residence on campus. Goodbody Hall, originally named Forest Hall, was built in 1936 and served as a women’s residence as well. Goodbody Hall is known for its unusual sculpture of a duck wearing a mortarboard and glasses, which is located on the west side of the building. The strategic location of both buildings created a small section of campus that female students could call home.

Eventually, the buildings evolved into office buildings and classrooms. Much of Memorial Hall was dedicated to the Department of Apparel Merchandising and Interior Design until that program was incorporated into the School of Art, Architecture, and Design in 2016. Goodbody Hall was home for many years to the Department of History and Philosophy of Science and Medicine. The School of Art, Architecture, and Design is now headquartered in Kirkwood Hall, in the historic Old Crescent district of campus, and History and Philosophy of Science and Medicine is now located in Ballantine Hall.

Completed in the fall of 2017, the Agnes E. Wells Quad renovation has 182 beds and a 200-seat dining hall. Guests arrive at Wells Quad for the ceremony. Guests take their seats before the ceremony begins. Photos by Eric Rudd, IU Communications

IU President Michael A. McRobbie delivers his remarks during the ceremony. Provost and Executive Vice President Lauren Robel addresses the audience during the dedication ceremony. Patrick H. Connor, executive director of Residential Programs and Services, talks about the impact Agnes E. Wells Quad will have on the student population. Photos by Eric Rudd, IU Communications

IU President Michael A. McRobbie holds up the key to Wells Quad. Neha Patel, a student representative from Wells Quad, talks about the positive experience of living in Agnes E. Wells Quad Women in STEM living-learning center. IU Trustee Philip N. Eskew Jr. officially dedicates Wells Quad and prepares to hand the key to the building to IU President Michael A. McRobbie. Photos by Eric Rudd, IU Communications