Skater Gate
Artist: David Jacobs Installed: 1992 Medium: Aluminum David Jacobs was a faculty member in the Fine Arts Department at Hofstra from 1962 to 1995, and is past chair of the department. His work has been shown in numerous exhibitions and in major museums such as the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (New York) and the Virginia Museum of Art.
Sondra and David S. Mack Student Center
The Sondra and David S. Mack Student Center is home to Hofstra’s extracurricular student life and host to hundreds of community events. It houses several dining facilities, the Hofstra University Bookstore, a bank, a post office, a hair and nail salon, a game room, and the offices of Student Leadership and Activities, Advisement, Dean of Students, Off-Campus Living and Commuting Student Services, Residential Programs, Multicultural & International Student Programs, the Interfaith Center, Orientation, Conference Services, Student Government Association and other major student organizations. constructed: 1967 Dedicated: 2001 Architect: Warner, Burns, Toan & Lunde named for: Hofstra alumnus and trustee David S. Mack and his wife, Sondra Did you know? The Student Center was open to the elements until 1985 when an atrium was added and enclosed the space outside the bookstore and dining areas. Many significant events have been held in the Student Center over the years. One of the first events held in the multipurpose room was the debate between Nassau County Executive Eugene Nickerson and Town Supervisor Sol Wachtler in 1967. Other guests and events over the years have included journalist Marie Torre, one of the first female television anchors, in 1987; a wildlife celebration for Earth Day in 1995; and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton in November 2000. Statistics: Square footage when constructed was 128,060. The atrium was designed in 1985 by Angelo F. Corva.
Unispan
constructed: 1967 Dedicated: 1980 Architect: Warner, Burns, Toan & Lunde named for: Clifford Lee Lord, Hofstra president (1964-1971) Did you know? When Clifford Lord, who was Hofstra president during the turbulent era of student protests, was informed that Hofstra was going to name the Unispan after him, he remarked, “This will ensure that future generations of Hofstra students will continue to walk all over me!� During student protest demonstrations, the Unispan was marred by graffiti. The Unispan is so strong that it could withstand being hit by a truck, which happened when a garbage truck hit the span on October 29, 1981! Statistics: The Unispan is 360 feet in length, and the slope of the interior was intentionally designed to permit passage by members of the Hofstra community who may be using wheelchairs.
Joan and Donald E. Axinn Library
The Joan and Donald E. Axinn Library houses the circulating book and journal collections, the Harold E. Yuker Reference Library, the John W. Wydler Government Documents Depository, two exhibition halls and two public lecture areas (the Guthart Cultural Center Theater and the East Library Wing). The completely renovated main floor contains a cafe and a 24-hour study area. The library contains more than 1 million volumes and more than 4,000 journals. Access to online information databases is available throughout the library via a wireless network and wired workstations. constructed: 1967 Dedicated: October 22, 1987 Architect: Warner, Burns, Toan & Lunde named For: Hofstra alumnus and trustee Donald E. Axinn and his wife, Joan Did you know? The library received four design honors from 1966 to 1968, including awards from the American Institute of Architects, the New York State Association of Architects, the Long Island Association of Commerce and Industry, and the Concrete Industry Board. When it was first built, the building’s two wings were only one story tall. The library was featured in a 1977 Batman comic drawn by Hofstra alumnus Robert Rozakis. Statistics: The 10 floors comprised 60,500 square feet when first constructed. Alterations to the ninth and 10th floors were made by Angelo F. Corva, while interior renovations to the main floor were made by Bentel & Bentel. In 1996 the Harold E. Yuker Reference Library was dedicated. The President’s Office was relocated to the west wing in 2002.
Hofstra Hall
Hofstra Hall houses the Office for Development and Alumni Affairs, the Office of University Relations and other administrative departments. constructed: 1904 Architect: Ward Wellington Ward and H. Craig Severance named for: William Sake Hofstra (1861-1932) and his wife, Kate Mason Hofstra (1854-1933) Did you know? The house was known as “The Netherlands,” recognizing Mr. Hofstra’s Dutch ancestry. Kate Hofstra kept her 27 cats in a steam-heated building behind Hofstra Hall. Both Mr. and Mrs. Hofstra died in the house, and President Truesdel Peck Calkins had a fatal heart attack in his office on the second floor. When the property was turned into a campus, all activities were held in the house, and it was the location of all offices, the cafeteria and student lounges. The Welcome Frosh Hop and pep rallies, as well as plays, fraternity and sorority stunts, and social gatherings, were held on the back porch.
Prior use: When the college first opened, the first floors were used for student lounges, a game room and cafeteria. Upper floors were devoted to administrative offices and instructional areas. By the 1950s, Hofstra Hall was the administrative center of the campus. In the 1960s, however, education, languages, business, speech and drama all had space in Hofstra Hall. In the 1980s, administrative offices again moved into the building.
Hauser Hall
Hauser Hall is home to the Department of Psychology. constructed: 1955 Dedicated: October 12, 1955 Architect: Aymar Embury named for: George H. Hauser, trustee for Hofstra University, chair of the Board of Trustees (1945-1955) Did you know? The dedication of Hauser Hall coincided with Hofstra’s 20th anniversary celebration. Events included an ROTC review on the drill field, speeches, and the dedication of Hauser Hall, which was also known as the chemistry building. This was followed by a soccer game between Hofstra and Kings Point. In 1959 the Geology Department, which was housed in Hauser Hall, featured a six-week requirement called “Side Camp.” This survival training taught students how to handle typical field work conditions. One of the study trips taken during Easter vacation in March 1959 was to southwestern Virginia. “A rather sleepy group of students,” it was reported, gathered at Hauser Hall at about 4 a.m. with bed rolls, cave ropes, hard hats, and lamps. They returned on April 3 after visiting a Harrisonburg zinc mine, collecting specimens, and separating the ore from the limestone.
Prior use: The building was constructed to house the Chemistry and Geology Departments. Statistics: Square footage when constructed was 22,016.
Memorial Hall
Memorial Hall is home to many student service areas, including Student Financial Services, Graduate Admissions, Advisement and Services for Students with Disabilities. Memorial Hall is also home to the largest dining facility on the South Campus, Bits ‘n’ Bytes. constructed: 1949 Dedicated: 1949 Architect: Aymar Embury named for: Hofstra students, faculty and staff who were World War II veterans Did you know? In 1952 students sponsored Operation Wing Ding to raise $35,000 to add a new wing for student dining and meeting space. The plan was for 1,800 Hofstra students to raise $20 each. Students babysat, held bake sales, auctioned off a raccoon-style coat (which received a bid of $1,000 from Hofstra trustee George H. Hauser), and sat on the roof of Memorial Hall and performed other stunts to raise money. Also in 1952 Rembrandts, Renoirs, and Picassos hung in Memorial Hall as The Metropolitan Museum of Art chose Hofstra as the site for an “experimental exhibit,” which was supposed to bring the museum’s collections to the “suburbs.” A faculty women’s retiring room was opened on the second floor of Memorial Hall in 1960.
Prior use: While it was devoted to student facilities at one time, the building also housed the Office of the Dean of Students, a cafeteria, bookstore and offices for student organizations. Statistics: Square footage when constructed was 54,022.
Dragonseed
Artist: Seymour Lipton Installed: 1994 Medium: Nickel, silver, and monel metals
Seymour Lipton became a proponent of the Abstract Expressionist movement after World War II. He was one of a group of American painters and sculptors who stretched their traditional boundaries and expressed their inner selves through the abstraction of their works and use of new methods and materials. Lipton, a self-taught artist, was profoundly affected by his concern for the masses of the Depression Era and the horrors of World War II. This sculpture, which was created in 1968, is on loan from the estate of Seymour Lipton, and was developed using Lipton’s method of direct metal sculpture that would become the trademark of his later works. He cut and bent sheets of steel, and later monel metal (a white bronze alloy), and welded them together. Rods of bronze or nickel-silver were then melted with oxyacetylene heat, thereby adding strength, textural interest, and color.
New Academic Building
The New Academic Building features a 230-seat black box theater – designed for dramatic productions – that has a technical balcony, stage, and dressing rooms. The architecturally distinctive structure also contains an acoustically isolated band rehearsal hall that seats 120, two breakout rehearsal rooms, an extensive music library and storage facilities. The building also contains additional office space and meeting rooms for music, speech, journalism, history and other faculty. While it contains no classrooms, the building has small conference rooms that are used by graduate and undergraduate classes. constructed: 2006 Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony: October 18, 2006 Architect: Designed by Studio A Architects of New York City; constructed by E.W. Howell Company of Westbury Did you know? In 1964 Hofstra Professor Herbert Deutsch collaborated with Dr. Robert Moog and created the Moog synthesizer, an invention that changed music history. A display dedicated to the prototype synthesizer and Professor Herbert Deutsch’s role in its creation is located in the lobby. Statistics: The building has 86,000 square feet.
Shakespeare Garden
Located on the western side of the John Cranford Adams Playhouse is the Shakespeare Garden. A bronze bust of Shakespeare stands in the center of the garden, while varieties of plants that are mentioned in the writings of Shakespeare surround it.
John Cranford Adams Playhouse
Hofstra University’s John Cranford Adams Playhouse, a 1,105-seat classic theater, has a proscenium stage with a hydraulic lift pit, a complete stage and box office. In addition to theatrical performances, the Playhouse has accommodated a wide variety of notable concerts, readings, and lectures by renowned artists, celebrities, authors, scholars and world leaders, including former presidents of the United States. constructed: 1958 Dedicated: March 23, 1974 Architect: Aymar Embury named for: John Cranford Adams, Hofstra president (1944-1964) Did you know? The Hofstra Debate Team competed against the Cambridge Team at the Playhouse in 1959, and the question they tried to settle was, “What is the greatest obstacle to world peace?” Also in 1959 the Hofstra College induction ceremony featured the Honorable Hendrik J. Hofstra, a member of the Netherlands Parliament, who presented the Frisian flag to Hofstra and addressed the students and faculty at a convocation at the Playhouse. Francis Ford Coppola, Hofstra Class of 1960, explained to reporters that he once sat in the excavation of the building and imagined he’d be famous one day! A variety of notables have spoken at the Playhouse, including U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy (who visited in 1964); Presidents Gerald Ford (in 1989) and Jimmy Carter (in 1990); actress Jennifer Lopez, who received an award in 1998; and news correspondent George Stephanopoulos, who visited Hofstra in 2008 as part of the yearlong Debate ’08 series. Statistics: Square footage when constructed was 40,504. Embury made early alterations from 1961 to 1963.
Tulip Tree
Between Dempster Hall and the John Cranford Adams Playhouse stands a tulip tree. This tree can grow to a height of more than 150 feet. In addition to height, there are reports of a specimen in a national park that is estimated to be 500 years old.
Dempster Hall
The 50,000-square-foot Dempster Hall houses not only the School of Communication but also WRHU Radio Hofstra University, Studio A (the largest noncommercial television soundstage on Long Island), and NewsHub (a cutting-edge, converged newsroom and multimedia classroom where large plasma screens provide displays of resource material, while cross-media news and information coordination systems help manage content). In addition, Dempster Hall houses a number of video control rooms that are better equipped than many television network affiliates, editing facilities and professional soundstages, and high-speed networking capabilities and software. constructed: 1985 Dedicated: May 22, 1986 Architect: Angelo F. Corva named for: Hofstra trustee George Dempster Did you know? Initially a teaching center for television and broadcasting, Dempster Hall soon became a state-of-the-art site for all types of communication. At its kick-off celebration, the past president of CBS, Frank Stanton, along with CBS anchor Jim Jensen and Hofstra alumnus Irv Gikofsky (WPIX weather expert Mr. G) made remarks.
Hofstra produces its own promotional videos and radio programs, and teaches every type of journalistic endeavor. Sometimes the studios are used for other sorts of programming. In 1986, for instance, a television show called What Every Baby Knows was filmed in the Dempster Hall studios. The show, which aired on the Lifetime Television Network, featured a Harvard professor of pediatrics, with Long Island parents and their children as guests. Statistics: Square footage when first built was 30,991.
Chinese Quince
Located in Roosevelt Quad, the Chinese quince is the largest quince tree on Long Island. It was moved to campus from Thomaston, New York, having been removed when the property owners planned a new driveway. Thomaston residents raised more than half the money needed to move the tree from its location to the Hofstra campus. The tree was most likely raised from a seedling sometime in the 1920s and planted on the Great Neck estate. Horticulturists who examined the tree determined that it was a rare breed not propagated in the United States and worthy of saving.
Calkins Hall
Calkins Hall is home to the Departments of Fine Arts/Art History, and Romance Languages and Literatures, as well as a gallery to display student artwork and special exhibitions. constructed: 1938 Dedicated: January 1938 Architect: Designed by Aymar Embury, with later alterations by Louis Jensen named for: Truesdel Peck Calkins, Hofstra president (1937-1942) Did you know? When constructed in 1938, Calkins was a gymnasium, and it remained a gymnasium until February 24, 1970, when the building was renovated and then reopened as Calkins Hall. The first Shakespeare Festival performances were held in Calkins Hall, with a replica of the Globe Theatre set up on the gym floor.
Prior use: The building was constructed as a gymnasium. In the 1970s, it was home to the Language and Literature Departments, as well as Fine Arts.
Trap
Artist: Seymour Lipton Installed: 1988 Medium: Nickel, silver, and monel metals
This sculpture, created in 1967, depicts the “great maker of the cosmos – like a giant bird with wide wings.” Lipton created the sculpture using his technique of cutting and bending sheets of metal and welding them together. Rods of bronze or nickel-silver were then melted with oxyacetylene heat, thereby adding strength, textural interest, and color. The sculpture, on loan from the estate of Seymour Lipton, was installed in 1988 in conjunction with an exhibition of Lipton’s work that was held at the Lowenfeld Exhibition Hall as well as several outdoor locations.
Barnard Hall
Barnard Hall is home to the Political Science and Economics Departments. constructed: 1937 Dedicated: October 8, 1937 Architect: Aymar Embury named for: James H. Barnard, trustee for the estate of Kate Hofstra, and trustee for Hofstra University Did you know? A Mitchel Field Air Force pilot crashed into Barnard Hall during take-off on March 23, 1943. The pilot was killed, but no students were hurt, as the crash occurred at 5:15 a.m. The government blamed the number of trees on the Hofstra property for the crash and removed 100 of them by court order. Later, it was determined that the accident occurred due to pilot error, and the government paid Hofstra the replacement cost of the trees.
Prior use: The building was constructed to house chemistry and biology laboratories and classrooms. By the 1970s, it was used by Special Studies and Political Science. Other departments, including Economics, Geography and American Studies, have been housed in Barnard. Statistics: The building was constructed of Glen-gery brick.
Chinese Witch Hazel Tree
Also on the south side of Hofstra Hall is the Chinese witch hazel tree. This tree blooms in late winter or very early spring and is covered with deep yellow and red-centered flowers that are exceptionally fragrant. Another interesting feature of this tree is that its twigs are densely felted and “hairy� when young.
Japanese Tree Lilac
Located on the south side of Hofstra Hall, the Japanese tree lilac has upright branches and a rounded top. In mid-June, this tree blooms with creamy white flowers. The fruit of the lilac is dry and encapsulated.
Creating
Artist: J. Seward Johnson, Jr. Installed: 1985 Medium: Bronze
J. Seward Johnson, Jr., a Johnson & Johnson heir, turned his attention to sculpture in 1968 after a successful career as a painter of impressionistic landscapes. Through careful placement, he allows his figures to become silent participants in the daily lives of the public. Creating sits under a shady tree behind Hofstra Hall. Although created in 1982, the sculpture was added to the Hofstra University Museum collection in 1985 after an exhibition of the artist’s sculptures on campus.
Brower Hall
In 2006 Brower Hall, one of our most frequently used classroom buildings, was completely remodeled. While it has retained its classic, ivy-covered exterior, inside it has the latest classroom technology; modern, colorful finishes; and comfortable furniture. constructed: 1936 Dedicated: October 9, 1936 Architect: Aymar Embury named for: Howard S. Brower, trustee for the estate of Kate Hofstra, trustee for Hofstra University, and Hofstra president (1942-1944) Did you know? When the building first opened, the fencing team had its matches in Brower Hall. In the summer of 1957, Brower Hall’s “flamingo room” was home to the Arithmetic Workshop, which helped local children with math skills.
Prior use: The building was initially used for the library and classrooms. In the 1960s, the Education, Sociology and History Departments moved in. In the 1970s, the Africana Studies Department also used the building. Statistics: Square footage when constructed was 9,030.
Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick
On either side of the Brower Hall entrance is Harry Lauder’s walking stick. This is one of the most unusual shrubs you will find on this tour. It flowers in April with simple, toothed leaves, and its fruit is edible. The feature that stands out, however, is that its limbs are contorted and grow in a corkscrew manner toward the sky.
Weller Hall
Weller Hall is home to the faculty and administration for the Frank G. Zarb School of Business. constructed: 1962 Dedicated: 1962 Architect: Aymar Embury named for: Hofstra trustee Augustus B. Weller Did you know? Weller Hall was taken over by students who staged a sit-in in April and May 1969, as this was the building that housed the administrative offices in those days. According to the president’s report after the sit-in, the students cleaned up after themselves, even sweeping the floors of debris!
Prior use: Initially constructed as Hofstra’s administrative building, the business departments moved into Weller in the 1990s.
Crossing the Channel
Artist: David Jacobs Installed: 1985 Medium: Welded aluminum
David Jacobs was a faculty member in the Fine Arts Department at Hofstra from 1962 to 1995, and is past chair of the department. Jacobs has said, “My recent sculptures take the form of figure, field or, more often, frame, and their surfaces are ground and oriented to reflect light in surprising ways to challenge the viewer’s sense of space.” This sculpture was created in 1979.
Pinetum
Located in Mason Quad, where the Henry Moore sculpture resides, the pinetum is a collection of conifers (trees that produce seeds in cones, rather than in flowers). There are distinct families of conifers in the pinetum: yew, pine cypress, swamp cypress, and cow’s tail pine. On the south side of Heger Hall is a multi-stemmed deciduous tree with heart-shaped leaves, the Japanese Katsura, which is more than 100 years old. This magnificent specimen’s leaves emerge red in the spring, turn a shiny green throughout the growing season, and then back to scarlet in autumn. A weeping Katsura is located in the southernmost section of the pinetum.
Upright Motive No. 9
Artist: Henry Moore Installed: 1987 Medium: Bronze
Henry Moore is considered one of the masters of modern art and has produced some of the most significant sculpture of our time. In 1955 he was commissioned to make a sculpture for the courtyard of a new building in Milan, Italy. The sculpture he created ultimately grew into a series titled “Upright Motives.” In 1979, after developing this recurring theme, he cast Upright Motive No. 9. At the time of his death in 1986, while the Hofstra University Museum and the Moore Foundation were planning an extensive Moore retrospective to be held in 1987, only two “Motives” remained in the foundation’s possession. Hofstra was lucky enough to be able to purchase this sculpture for its permanent collection.
Heger Hall
Heger Hall is currently home to the Philosophy and Religion Departments and the dean of Hofstra College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. constructed: 1951 Dedicated: December 10, 1952 Architect: Aymar Embury named for: Hofstra trustee Emil H. Heger Did you know? Emil Heger, a Long Island bank president, donated $250,000 for the construction of the building that bears his name. He explained that he “only had half a dozen years of formal education and six months of night courses …” yet he believed in the value of a secondary education. He then presided over the “tree-chopping” ceremonies in 1950; Hofstra President John Cranford Adams took an ax to a tree on the Hofstra property where the building was going to be constructed.
Prior use: Initially, the business departments made their home in Heger; they remained in the building until the 1970s, while the Accounting Department stayed through the 1980s. Gradually, Anthropology, African Studies, HCLAS, History, Philosophy and Sociology moved in. Statistics: Square footage when constructed was 15,174.
Monkey Puzzle
This tree, located just west of Mason Hall, is a conifer with sharp, stiff needles that point upward and grow closely together with a very symmetrical and rope-like appearance. The origin of the name derives from the early cultivation of the tree in Great Britain in about 1850. Legend has it that as the tree was being shown in Cornwall, someone remarked, “It would puzzle a monkey to climb that.�
Mason Hall
Mason Hall is currently home to Hofstra’s Department of English. Gallon Wing, which is on the north side of Mason Hall, houses Hofstra’s NOAH (New Opportunities at Hofstra) program and the Hofstra Cultural Center. constructed: 1938 Dedicated: 1941 Architect: Aymar Embury named for: Kate Mason Hofstra (1854-1933) Did you know? The building was first named for Rufus D. Smith, who was dean of students in the late 1930s, but after Hofstra College separated from New York University, the name of the building was changed to honor Kate Mason Hofstra. Smith, an administrator who was appointed by the NYU administration, returned to NYU after Hofstra gained its independence.
Prior use: The building housed the library until the late 1960s, when the Axinn Library was constructed. In the 1970s, the Education Department moved in, including housing a child care center in Gallon Wing. Statistics: Square footage when constructed was 21,762. Gallon Wing was added in 1958 and was designed by the firm of Embury, Embury & Jensen. The Emily and Jerry Spiegel Theater was also built in 1958 and renovated in 1986.
Frederick Douglass Circle
Artist: Vinnie Bagwell Installed: 2008 Medium: Bronze
In 2007 a committee composed of Hofstra students, faculty, administration, and staff was formed to oversee the selection of an outdoor sculpture that reflected diversity and the accomplishments of people of color. After a national competition, the bronze sculpture Frederick Douglass Circle by artist Vinnie Bagwell was chosen. Now part of the Hofstra University Museum’s collection and located in the Monroe Lecture Center Courtyard on the South Campus, it commemorates one of the most prominent figures in African American and U.S. history, a man who was a steadfast believer in the equality of all people.
Phoenix
Artist: John Safer Installed: 2003 Medium: Stainless steel
This sculpture is dedicated to the members of the Hofstra community who died on September 11, 2001.
Hofstra Labyrinth
Artist: Installed: 2000 Medium: Granite
The Hofstra Labyrinth is adapted from the world-renowned labyrinth in Chartres Cathedral, France. By tradition, labyrinths are considered symbols of spiritual and intellectual enlightenment, paths walked from periphery to center as metaphors for the journeys in life from sickness to health, despair to promise, ignorance to knowledge.
C.V. Starr Hall
C.V. Starr Hall, a technologically enhanced building, is home to the classroom facilities for the Frank G. Zarb School of Business, as well as seminar classes for all academic disciplines. Also housed in this building is the Martin B. Greenberg Trading Room, a state-of-the-art academic trading facility that gives Hofstra faculty and students the ability to access and analyze a vast array of financial and economic data, conduct interactive trading simulations, and develop contemporary financial models. constructed: 2000 Dedicated: May 21, 2000 Architect: Angelo F. Corva named for: Cornelius Vander Starr, founder of The Starr Foundation, which supports educational endeavors Did you know? In 2007 Hofstra faculty member Dana Brand gave a lecture in C.V. Starr Hall about the New York Mets. His book Mets Fan was published in the same year. The University has a historical relationship with the baseball team, as William Shea (for whom Shea Stadium was named) was a member of Hofstra’s Board of Trustees. Statistics: 45,000-square-foot building with state-of-the-art classroom facilities. Students can access the Internet and connect to the Axinn Library’s databases. There are six collaborative classrooms with personal computers, six lecture-style classrooms, and three large lecture hall spaces.