Beardshear Hall is an administration building at

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricult ...

located on Morrill Road. The building was designed by Proudfoot & Bird Architects and constructed in 1906. Today, Beardshear Hall holds the following offices: *

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

*Vice-President *Treasurer *Secretary *Student financial aid * Provost

History

When a fire destroyed the "Old Main" building in 1902, it was determined that a new administration building was needed and the location of Old Main was the best location. As a result of the fire to Old Main, fireproofing the new building was a high priority. Fireproof buff Bedford stones were used extensively in the construction of the new Central Building. Massive

scagliola Scagliola (from the Italian language, Italian ''scaglia'', meaning "chips") is a type of fine plaster used in architecture and sculpture. The same term identifies the technique for producing columns, sculptures, and other architectural elements t ...

columns were used in the interior, columns so like marble that even experts were deceived. The building materials were so fireproof that only the hardwood furniture was capable of burning. The Central Building originally housed the Office of the

, the Departments of English,

Mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

Botany Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

History History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

, Modern Languages, and

Elocution Elocution is the study of formal speaking in pronunciation, grammar, style, and tone as well as the idea and practice of effective speech and its forms. It stems from the idea that while communication is symbolic, sounds are final and compel ...

, the Office of the Secretary and Treasurer, and the Office of the

Board of Trustees A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

. In 1938 the building was renamed Beardshear Hall, after William Beardshear, the president of the institution during the planning and construction stages of Central Building. By the mid 1970s all classes in Beardshear Hall had been relocated to other buildings on campus, leaving the Office of the President and the Office of the Provost, and the Office of the Vice President for Business as the most prominent offices in the building. Other offices directly impacting student life still located in Beardshear Hall include the Office of Student Financial Aid and the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs.

References

{{Iowa State University Iowa State University buildings and structures 1906 establishments in Iowa