Georgia Southern will reallocate space on the first floor of Hawes Hall, which has housed the History Department for over twenty years.
The reallocation is set to occur sometime later this year, though no specific date has been settled. This change involves moving the Parker College of Business MBA program to the first-floor area.
The History Department will maintain its presence in Hawes Hall but will relinquish the suite of offices that house the department chair’s office, the conference room, the kitchen and other adjacent spaces. Their administrative offices will likely move to Hawes Hall 109A-D.
Numerous factors influenced this decision.
The Armstrong Task Force, according to Associate Provost Dustin Anderson, recommended this course of action to “better align with the region’s market needs by focusing on high-demand programs.”
Anderson added that the Medical College’s arrival necessitated the MBA program finding a new home.
“There should not be an impact to students,” Anderson said. “As the History Department’s administrative offices will remain in Hawes Hall.”
“The faculty of the History Department, the chair, all the professors and the administrative folks will do everything we can to make sure it doesn’t impact the students,” said Associate History Professor Kurt Knoerl.
Knoerl said that there would be no downsizing of the History Department in terms of faculty. Professors will still have offices, and many office reassignments will likely involve faculty who primarily teach on the Statesboro Campus.
Despite the change, some aspects of the status quo will continue, including access to the reflectory — a popular study spot for history students.
“As a department, we’ll have to use that as well because we’re losing the Lanier conference room,” Knoerl clarified.
However, the Phi Alpha Theta room, previously accessible to club members, will no longer be available.
Reflecting personally on these developments in an email exchange, History Department Chair Carol Herringer said:
“As historians, we study disruption, so we know that change happens and how to make it a positive thing.”
