Decades of dreaming and several semesters of separation from the building ended in January when faculty and students moved back into Cogswell Hall.
Dispersed to various locations across campus, they now found themselves in a totally renovated and enlarged structure. It was Cogswell, all right, but it certainly didn’t seem like Cogswell.
When it was built in 1959 and named in honor of Hamlin Cogswell, the building was designed for two hundred undergraduates and a faculty of twenty. Today, there are 343 undergraduate music students, fifteen graduate students, and thirty-four faculty members.
Completely renovated and rearranged, the building has also expanded northward and westward. It has presence, whether viewed from the recently widened Oakland Avenue or from South Eleventh Street.
The Gwendolyn Lewis ’53 and James Botti ’55 Music Practice Room was made possible through the generosity of Shirley Ullom Filcik ’53, who wanted to honor the wedding anniversary of her college roommate and her husband, both of whom studied music at IUP.
The Jay L. Althouse ’73, M’75 Rehearsal Room is named in honor of the alumnus, a musical composer, arranger, editor, and author.
The Joan Frey Boytim ’55, M’64 Vocal Studio is named for the alumna, who also made her donation in memory of longtime faculty member Gladys Dunkelberger.
Music librarian Carl Rahkonen and library technician Teri McFerron in the Orendorff Music Library. The library uses space formerly occupied by an auditorium.
On the day Cogswell formally “reopened,” former band director Daniel Di Cicco ’54 took a ceremonial turn as conductor in one of five spacious rehearsal halls. The IUP Marching Band, for the first time in recent memory, can now practice together in one facility.
Olive Fornear ’33, right, a faculty member at the university for sixteen years until her retirement, shares thoughts with students in the piano laboratory. At far left is current faculty member Judith Radell.