Editors’ Note: This story was updated to accurately represent the cost of phase two of the Williams School project.
The new Williams School building is up and running, leaving Huntley Hall almost vacant. All professor offices have been moved out and only a few classes are held in the building.
The university plans to renovate the interior of Huntley Hall as phase two of the Williams School project. The $19.5 million project will be presented to W&L’s Board of Trustees in February. If the plans are approved, construction will begin this summer and last for two years, according to Robert Straughan, dean of the Williams School.
“We are very, very close, probably a couple of weeks away from completing the design,” said Straughan.
Plans include leaving the exterior of Huntley Hall unchanged, but completely renovating the interior. The space will have a similar design as the new building.
“Just like the new Williams School building, Huntley will have a mixture of different sorts of learning spaces, gathering spaces and offices,” said Straughan.
The new building has been open for three months, operating with students for one.
Business major Campbell FitzHugh, ’26, says it is nice to finally have a space to congregate with others in her department.
“I really like the bigger study spaces. When we were in Huntley, we would go to class, but we were missing the community element,” said FitzHugh.
Meagan Baxley, ’26, has a class in the Williams School right now and is expecting to have two next semester. She says that she loves the new business school, so if Huntley looks like it, she will be happy.
“They [the new classrooms] allow for styles of teaching that our Huntley Hall classrooms didn’t necessarily allow,” said Straughan. “The way we teach, the way students learn, is different now than it was in 1980.”
The plans for Huntley include a new computer lab, something that the new building does not have.
Other students have complained that the interior of the new building is too sterile or boring. Cate Wachholz, ’26, says she has not spent much time in the building because her classes are elsewhere but is not a fan of the interior design.
“I think it feels a little sterile,” Wachholz said. “I prefer the older buildings on campus, the ones that still have their character, like Payne.”
Straughan says he is already communicating with the architects to incorporate some of the feedback into the Huntley design plans, like implementing more power outlets.
The university is in the process of raising money for the $19.5 million renovation. Straughan did not disclose the amount of money currently raised for the project, but said there is still a long way to go.
The Williams School project started in 2017. After construction for the new building began, the architects have been able to shift their focus almost entirely on Huntley for the past year and a half.
“We have been on this for eight years now, and we have still got a few years to go,” said Straughan.
Huntley will continue hosting limited classes through winter term and may close for spring term, depending on the timeline of the project.
