Audrey Hirt Academic Building
Goal: $6,000,000
When plans were first made to add a spectacular classroom building to the Mercyhurst College campus five years ago, little did anyone know that by the time the doors on that structure swung open in September 2002, it would be a necessity and not a luxury.
With a main campus enrollment of more than 3,000 - 693 of them freshmen - Mercyhurst was no longer hoping to have additional classrooms open by the start of the 2002-2003 academic year - it was praying.
Luckily, with the Herculean efforts of general contractor Building Systems Inc., architects from Weber Murphy Fox and more than 30 subcontractors, the Hirt Center debuted two months early - and just in the nick of time.
As the first 235 students strolled in the front door to take their places in the eight 8 a.m. classes on Sept. 10, 2002, they saw workers still poring over construction projects, including the Hurst TV studio and the Dr. Barrett and Catherine Walker Recital Hall, construction of which was put on hiatus until after the start of the academic year.
In all, 1,456 students "took a seat" in the Hirt Center that first day, and the Mercyhurst family embarked on a two-month celebration of its newest addition.
Over the next two months, the building would receive some of its most spectacular finishing touches - the fused glass window in the tower, crafted by Erie artist Ed Grout, and the paintings of the fall sky and Presque Isle sunset in the tower dome, realized by Greg Felix, who drew from Michelangelo to complete his contribution to the Hirt Center. The official college seal comprised of 270 colored ceramic tiles precision-cut by water jets was inlaid as part of the lobby floor. The Audrey Hirt Academic Center Donor Recognition Wall was unveiled - a series of 36 2-foot by 2-foot granite panels, each quarried at the Sable Brown Quarry near Anticoste Island in Quebec before being engraved by Ed and Mary Garr, owners of Erie City Memorials, with the names of many who invested in the future of Mercyhurst with a donation to the Hirt Center.
Slowly but surely, all the minutiae were completed for the official launch of the building on Sunday, Oct. 27, 2002, and after a private dedication ceremony in honor of those whose hard work and dedication paved the way for the center's opening, Audrey Hirt stood and offered her own words:
"It has been an enriching and rewarding experience to have been a partner in this project with so many dedicated people who worked tirelessly to make it a reality," Mrs. Hirt told the capacity crowd in the Dr. Barrett and Catherine Walker Recital Hall during the 1:30 p.m. ceremony. "As for my part, I see myself not as a donor, but as an investor in the future of Mercyhurst. Although this building may bear my name, in reality, it is dedicated to all alumni of Mercyhurst College - past, present and future."
After a day complete with tours by Mercyhurst ambassadors, refreshments and an open house for both the Erie and Mercyhurst communities, the grand finale: the inaugural performance in the Dr. Barrett and Catherine Walker Recital Hall.
On the evening of Oct. 27, world renowned pianist Lorin Hollander enthralled guests, including the Walkers and their family, with a two-hour recital in the hall, which holds 250 and features stadium seating and superb acoustics.
Today, classes hum along in the smart classrooms equipped with computers and projectors, the graphic arts students showcase their work in the lower level lab, the Hurst studios elicit groans of jealously from visiting media and the students have claimed the building with posters about upcoming speakers, computers for sale and invitations to outings over Thanksgiving and Christmas breaks.