Wentworth Remains Under Construction
Over the summer, the Exeter campus underwent minor path changes and saw several renovations to its buildings—most notably Wentworth Hall, which received both interior and exterior modifications.
According to Director of Facilities Management Mark Leighton, more than 50 “major projects” occurred this summer, all of which are part of the Academy’s 10 year renewal project. In particular, Leighton highlighted the “renovations to Wentworth Hall, replacement of the mechanical and electrical systems at Elm Street Dining Hall and the start of Phase three and four of the library renewal project.”
The northern entrance to Wentworth has been extended to where the four square court used to be. In addition to the removal of its north entrance known as “The Bubble,” Wentworth will be getting a new common space, student kitchen and elevator.
Leighton noted that Wentworth’s renovation would be completed by next summer. “The most extensive was the renovations to Wentworth Hall which will be ongoing into October,” Leighton said. “The contractor will demobilize in October and return in June 2020 to complete the renovation over the summer.” Despite construction, Leighton assured that students would have access to the northern entrance throughout the year.
In addition to Wentworth, the Academy’s College Counseling Office (CCO) saw a smaller scale makeover to accommodate its growing staff with more office space.
Dean of College Counseling Elizabeth Dolan was appreciative of the renovation and the help provided by the Academy’s Facilities and Grounds teams. “The facilities folks have been amazing in supporting this ‘new space’ project,” Dolan said. “We feel very fortunate to have two additional college counselors as well as space within the CCO to accommodate them.”
Leading up to the initiation of Wentworth’s renovations, the Academy invested extensive efforts to ensure the project’s success. “The campus architect and facilities team took considerable time to meet with myself and the dorm team to help explain what kinds of work was being done so we had a pretty good idea what was coming,” Computer Science Instructor and Wentworth Dorm Head Sean Campbell said.
Several Wentworth faculty and students reacted positively to the changes. “Once everything is done, we will have a new common space on the third floor,” Campbell said. “It has been many years since Wentworth’s last renovation … I think we were ‘next,’ so to speak. Based on the state of some of the dorm’s facilities, this was a needed upgrade.”
On the other hand, lower and Wentworth resident Garret Paik felt uncertain about the cause for Wentworth’s renovations as opposed to that of other dorms. “I’m not completely sure why Wentworth was chosen for renovations; I know they wanted to get rid of the bubble, but there are definitely dorms that are in worse shape, like Merrill or Abbot,” Paik said.
Despite feeling “excited” at the prospect of a facelift for Wentworth, lower Jack Puchalski was also wary of some possible effects of the construction. Specifically, Puchalski mentioned, “We used to have a four-square court in front of the bubble, with benches set up where people would relax and hang out, and this new extension of the dorm just kind of engulfed that.” He also noted that “A few people have had their rooms knocked out, since they have to put the elevator in […] so people were displaced on every floor.”
Senior Jasper Yu expressed his excitement for the new renovations. “I was super amped,” Yu said. “They brought in floor plans, invited the whole dorm to the basement and showed us the floor plans for the exterior and interior of the building.”
Though the interior renovations of Wentworth will not be completed until after the class of 2020 graduates, Yu believed that the new renovations, especially the common room, would make a huge impact on incoming and returning classes by improving dorm relations. “Our [current] common room and our basement…are located at the bottom of the dorm. It’s very hard for everyone to get through, so not a lot of people try to go there,” Yu said. “This new common room will bring everyone together because it’s right in the middle of the dorm.”
Campbell agreed with Yu’s sentiment. “Another gathering place will mean greater interaction and a stronger bond among the students.”
Although Facilities managed 50 projects of all sizes this summer, Leighton reported that there were no major complications and “all projects were successful.”