The Buildings of Central Michigan University
Helen R. Emmons Hall
Opened 1965
Cost: $1.4 million
Occupancy: 344
Emmons Hall was designed by Roger Allen and Associates of Grand Rapids, the
architect for most of the buildings at Central Michigan University. The building
included several new features, some of which are still extant. The basement
of the Woldt-Emmons complex, beneath the dining room where Computer Services
is now housed, was a new student union, complete with a cafeteria, a bookstore,
and recreation rooms. The shared lobby connecting Woldt and Emmons was the first
of its kind on campus. The building also housed art studio facilities in the
early 1980s.
The
hall was named for the Head of the Department of Early Eduction from 1926 to
1934. Emmons received her Life Certificate from the Chicago College of Education,
and taught in the kindergartens of the Presbyterian Social Services Board in
Chicago. In 1915 she taught kindergarten in Fargo, North Dakota, before coming
to Central in 1916. She became the Head of the Department of Early Education
in 1926, and received her Bachelors of Education from the Evanston National
College of Education. She was a member of the Association for Childhood Education,
and helped establish kindergartens throughout Michigan.