“I always tell prospective students that they should never choose an institution because of its buildings; it’s what’s going on inside them that counts. But what we’ve learned from recent projects is that the right buildings can trigger positive changes beyond our most ambitious plans.”
— Morton Owen Schapiro, President

Williams’ Board of Trustees voted unanimously in January 2006 to proceed with a $128 million project that involves constructing two new buildings for faculty offices and classrooms, removing two additions to Stetson Hall and building a new Sawyer Library in their place, and then removing the current Sawyer Library building to create a new quadrangle in the heart of campus. When complete, the Stetson-Sawyer project will serve as home to two-thirds of Williams’ faculty, a state-of-the-art library and media facility, and a focal point for the humanities and social sciences to rival Williams’ Science Center — acclaimed as a national model of collaborative, technologically-enriched learning.

map

WILLIAMS’ NEW NORTHEAST QUAD

(1) North academic building
(2) South academic building
(3) New Sawyer Library, housing the Chapin Library of Rare Books and Manuscripts, the Williams College Archives and Special Collections, and the new Center for Media Initiatives

When old Sawyer Library is razed, a new campus green (4) will extend from Stetson's elegant facade (5) all the way to Paresky Center (6) and the Freshman Quad (7).

Two new academic buildings replace “the rabbit warren … ”

North Building gallery Nearly two-thirds of Williams’ faculty members teach in the humanities and social sciences. Most of them are crowded into two annexes behind Stetson Hall. To enable these professors to meet their own high teaching standards and implement Williams’ ambitious curricular initiatives, two new academic buildings are being built to the north and south of the current Sawyer Library. These two academic centers will together house 160 faculty offices, as well as classrooms, small meeting rooms, a state-of-the-art language lab, large public events space, and Williams’ first archeology lab. Each office will easily accommodate a professor and two students to support tutorial-style classes, and all classrooms will feature state-of-the-art teaching technology.

Stetson
Stetson Hall with new Sawyer Library behind. Portion of south academic building in right foreground.

“ … and a new Sawyer Library is born.”

Stetson entry Once professors have relocated to the new north and south academic buildings, the old Stetson additions will be razed and a new Sawyer Library built in their stead. Stetson Hall will become the entry for a dynamic building that will house a new main library and combined space for the Archives and Chapin Library. Stetson’s refurbished lobby will lead patrons into the traditional two-story reading room, which will also be restored to its original appearance and function. The new library complex will make collections and services easier to find and offer more comfortable accommodations, including collaborative work spaces.

mezzanine Finally, the new library will be home to the new Center for Media Initiatives (CMI). Funded in part through a grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, CMI will incorporate the best emerging digital and multimedia technologies, both in the curriculum and to support scholarly research.

north view
WILLIAMS’ NEW VIEW FROM THE NORTHEAST: Stetson Hall, at left, is restored and becomes the grand entrance to the new Sawyer Library, whose north wing is partially shown in left foreground. North end of Hopkins Hall at center; east wings of north and south academic buildings at right.

From A Report from Williams 2007. For a printed copy of the full report, e-mail arcomms@williams.edu.