Murphy Center has been the central hub for student and faculty activity for decades now; however, students have not yet felt welcome to hang about after class. Therefore, Vice President of Advancement, Jim Salmo, and director of Alumni & Affinity Giving, Leah Achterverg, have made it the mission of the Alumni Plaza project to fix this issue. In doing so, they seek to preserve the legacy of their proud Viterbo alumni.
Murphy Center is celebrating its 80th birthday this year and has many projects underway to deliver a much-needed face-lift to the building. All its windows are to be redone, a generous alum gave a six-figure gift to redo the lobby, and the SGA is redoing the library at an approved budget of over $90,000. Now the alumni outreach programs are asking former students and graduating seniors to help clean up Murphy’s east side entrance. As Salmo stated, “It feels like a back door and it deserves better.”
The plan, according to the team, is to totally transform this area into a hangout space for current students, as well as act as a touchstone for visiting alumni and their families. In the blueprints, plaques will be placed on each column, a history walk lining the walls inside the corridor, seating both on the ground and up on the balcony, and lighting to make the space safe and accessible. “If we learned anything from COVID,” Salmo reflected, “outside destinations are better than inside destinations when students congregate.”
To achieve this goal, Salmo speculated they need around 1,200 to 1,300 names to fill these plaques. The price? Well, if you are a graduating senior, or graduated in the year 2020, you’re in luck. Per name, the price to be transcribed on a plaque is $300 dollars for alumni and a reduced $180 for the aforementioned group. This reduced price will only be offered to graduating seniors from 2020 onward. The money gifted to this project will pay for the plans mentioned and any surplus will go toward additional campus beautification initiatives. Students of the Fine Arts Center—celebrating its 50th this year—can also prioritize their name to be on a separate plaque if desired.
The plaza is expected to be completed in Spring of 2022, if all goes to plan. This would make current first and second-year students the first benefactors. However, graduates and alumni who gift toward the plaza this year, according to Achterverg, will elevate the space for future students to enjoy. “We want students to get excited about this,” Said Achterverg, “Years from now they’re going to come back to visit, and our wish is that seeing their history represented will make those many years feel like it was just yesterday.”
Achterverg and her associates plan to poll student interest and provide information in these last few weeks. Those interested in learning more or wanting to get started are encouraged to visit www.viterbo.edu/ap.
