CSC to dedicate campus improvements

Workers lay out the lettering and artwork of the new campus entrance portal.
Workers lay out the lettering and artwork of the new campus entrance portal at 10th and Main on Sept. 23. The new decorative feature will be dedicated during homecoming activities Saturday, Oct. 1. (Photo by Dewayne Gimeson)

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Chadron State College will formally dedicate three new features of its campus during homecoming festivities Saturday. The ceremony, which is part of the Centennial Pregame Festival, is set to begin at 12:30 p.m. on the Dean’s Green.

 

Dale Grant, CSC vice president for administration and finance, said the newest of the three, a bronze outdoor sculpture titled “The Muses,” is expected to arrive by shipment Wednesday. The piece, which will be installed on the plaza east of Old Admin, consists of three nearly life-sized human figures with outstretched arms. The figures represent art, science and sport – the essence of the educational experience and a balanced life. Artist David Alan Clark of Lander, Wyo., was commissioned to create the piece, which helps meet the State of Nebraska’s art requirements for the renovation of Sparks Hall and Old Admin. The two projects occurred 2007-2009.

Clark said the new sculpture is intended to look like a torch from a distance -- “a visual play on the enlightenment gained through education, and a fitting symbol for the center of campus.”

The other two structures, the new Centennial Flag Plaza on the Dean’s Green and the entrance portal flanking Main Street at the 10th Street intersection, are all but complete.

The new portal, constructed of concrete, brick and iron, will greet visitors with the words “Chadron State College” on one side and “Eagles” on the other. As of Tuesday, all that was left of the portal project was the placing of the athletic logo on its west half.

The plaza has already been used for one event this month – a tribute to those who have died because of 9/11.

Dr. Janie Park, CSC president, said each of the new features is part of a broader initiative to beautify the campus. Each project has been accentuated with landscaping, plantings and lighting.

“I hope that the each of these projects will serve as a lasting tribute to CSC’s centennial year and give a great first impression to visitors for generations to come,” Park said.

-Justin Haag

Category: Campus News