Academic Facilities

The Art Building, erected in 1890, provides classrooms and studios for art students. The art curriculum is supported by more than 10,000 square foot of classrooms and workshops, most of which are located in the Art Barn, a converted dairy barn on the west campus.

The Ellen Clarke Bertrand Library (built in 1951 and named for a generous benefactress) is the center of information services for the campus. Located in one of the landmark buildings at Bucknell, the library is a leader among peer institutions in providing access to both an outstanding traditional print collection as well as the increasingly important world of digital information. The Information Commons on the first floor of the library provides students with one location to get assistance with everything from how to find resources to write a paper to how to troubleshoot a computer or network problem. The library offers a variety of study spaces, network connections, databases, media services, and computer workstations.

The Botany Building was renovated in 1992 for use by the Career Development Center and the Office of Personnel Services.

Bucknell Hall, dedicated in 1886, was renovated in 1988 for use as a poetry center and recital hall. It houses the Stadler Center for Poetry, named for benefactors Jack Stadler ’40 and his late wife, Ralynn.

The Carnegie Building holds offices and classrooms for the department of history. Constructed in 1905 under a grant from Andrew Carnegie, this building originally served as the library of the university. Most recently, it held classrooms and laboratories for the department of geology and facilities for physical geography.

Named for Robert Rooke ’13 in 1991, the Rooke Chemistry Building contains classroom and seminar rooms, faculty offices, and modern laboratories for faculty and students. In addition, designated laboratories house special equipment, such as the nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometers, the gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer, and an x-ray diffractometer.

Linked to the Rooke Chemistry Building is the Biology Building, completed in the fall of 1991. The facility houses faculty offices and research laboratories as well as a variety of laboratories designed for use by both non-majors and majors and a rooftop greenhouse. Students enrolled in the biochemistry and cell biology majors share laboratories in the adjoining buildings. New animal study laboratories were constructed in the building in 2002.

William H. Coleman Hall, dedicated in 1959, was a gift of the F. W. Olin Foundation, and is named in honor of the late Dr. Coleman, who served Bucknell for more than 30 years as professor of English, dean of the university, and vice president. The newly renovated building (2002) houses classrooms, faculty offices, several lecture halls, a number of laboratories and seminar rooms, and the 500-seat theatre equipped for work in the dramatic arts. Renovated in 1996, the theatre was renamed the Harvey M. Powers Theatre in 1997.

The Charles A. Dana Engineering Building is named for a generous benefactor in recognition of his support of engineering and scientific education. Begun in 1921 and completed in 1940, it houses the College of Engineering and provides the many laboratories and classrooms essential to the university's engineering program. A $4 million renovation and expansion of the building was completed in June 1985. An addition in 2001 incorporates the latest teaching/classroom design, called the Collaborative Learning Space.

Attached to the Dana Engineering Building is the Computer Center, (built in 1980) which serves as the network and telecommunications hub for the campus. Every student living on campus has easy access to a high-speed connection to the campus network and the Internet. While student ownership of computers is not required, most students find having one to be a valuable part of the Bucknell experience. A variety of electronic classrooms and labs, the Information Commons in the library, a strong set of network services, and access to the network from student housing provides the Bucknell student with almost ubiquitous access.

The Civil Engineering Structural Test Laboratory east of Dana Engineering houses a 600,000-lb. Baldwin universal testing machine as well as civil engineering offices and other testing equipment.

Elizabeth Koons Freas Hall was given to Bucknell in 1965 by the late A. Guy Freas, a trustee of the university, in honor of his wife. Connecting Coleman Hall with Marts Hall, it houses the admissions offices. The prominent patio atop the building on the academic quad was renovated in 2002.

The Elaine Langone Center, which opened in 1971, contains the university bookstore; student post office; study, game, and lounge rooms; offices for student life and student government; facilities for lectures, performances, and meetings; art gallery; and dining facilities, including a snack bar and the Refectory, a served dining room. The Roy Grier Bostwick Memorial Dining Room, serving students, is named in recognition of a gift to the university in his honor from the estate of his widow, Marie Leiser Bostwick. In 1990, Bucknell trustee Ken Langone ’57 provided the naming gift for the student center in honor of his wife, Elaine. A major renovation to the game room and snack bar was completed in 1990. The Bostwick Dining Room and Servery was completely renovated in 2002.

The Observatory, constructed in 1963 to replace an earlier one which had been a gift of William Bucknell, includes laboratories and an outdoor deck for astronomical research.

The O'Leary Psychology and Geology Center opened for the fall semester 2002. The 40,000 square feet facility brings together the psychology department staff in one location and provides new office, classroom and lab space for both geology and psychology departments. This building completes the phased development of the science center project. It is named in honor of Brian ’60 and Judith McAllister O'Leary ’60.

Funds for the construction in 1955 of the F. W. Olin Science Building came from the F. W. Olin Foundation. Renovated in 1989-90, it houses the departments of physics, mathematics, and education.

The Psychology and Animal Behavior Laboratory consists of offices, seminar rooms, computer rooms, and areas for the housing of animals, including quarantine cages and two all-weather enclosures in which two species of nonhuman primates live. The main building was built in 1947 and rebuilt in 1964 to serve its current function. In 1990, a major renovation of the facility was completed.

The Charles M. and Olive S. Rooke Chapel seats 500 on the main floor and 250 in the balconies. In addition to the chaplain's offices, the south wing houses a reception room and a meditation chapel. The chapel was given to the university in 1964 by Robert L. Rooke, Class of 1913, secretary emeritus of the Board of Trustees, in memory of his parents.

Stephen W. Taylor Hall, named in honor of the author of the university's charter, was erected in 1849 as the first building on College Hill. In 1994, Taylor Hall was renovated for use by the management department, the Office of International and Off-campus Studies, and Bucknell Press offices.

The Tustin Building, which was used for many years as a gymnasium, is named in honor of Francis W. Tustin, Class of 1856, who later became a member of the faculty. Dedicated in 1890, the building was completely remodeled and equipped in 1938, and in 1961 a wing was added. Tustin is now used for academic and extracurricular programs. In 1986 the flexible black box Tustin Studio Theatre was opened.

The Charles P. Vaughan Literature Building and Arnaud C. Marts Hall correspond in design and size to Coleman Hall. A 450-seat auditorium, classrooms, and offices for faculty are provided in the Literature Building, completed in 1938 and named in honor of Charles P. Vaughan, a trustee who also served, in 1931, as acting president.

Marts Hall, built in 1960, houses administrative offices as well as departments of instruction. Arnaud C. Marts, for whom it is named, was the university’s seventh president and a member of the Board of Trustees.

Completed in 1988, the Sigmund and Claire Weis Center for the Performing Arts, a concert hall with seating for 1,300, is located west of the academic quadrangle at the entrance to the campus, opposite Rooke Chapel.

The Sigfried Weis Music Building, located next to the Weis Center for the Performing Arts, was completed in fall 2000 and houses classrooms, faculty offices, a computerized keyboard lab, practice rooms, a music library, and a 176-seat recital hall. It is named for Sigfried Weis, former chairman of the Bucknell Board of Trustees.