While the future of Cole Hall received significant conversation time on campus, Faculty Senate also discussed other elements pertaining to the Feb. 14 shootings Wednesday.

The February 14 Scholarship Fund has received more than $200,000 in donations from 975 donors, Faculty Senate President Paul Stoddard said. The donated money will be allocated toward scholarships, with five scholarships endowed in memory of each of the victims, Stoddard said.

Faculty Senate also discussed the lack of follow-up information on the Dec. 10 and Feb. 7 graffiti incidents. Feb. 14 is no longer a criminal investigation and new information related to the graffiti incidents is available, Stoddard said.

Even if the information is unable to shed light on any answers, the public deserves to know the reasons why the answers are unavailable, said anthropology professor Kendall Thu.

“Knowing why you don’t know is very important,” Thu said.

Also, two research projects are underway on campus to study the aftermath of the Feb. 14 shootings, Thu said.

Classroom Crunch

Faculty Senate also discussed the classroom space-related issues due to Cole Hall’s closing.

“I was teaching Tuesdays and Thursdays at 11 [a.m.] in Cole Hall, which was changed to Tuesdays and Thursdays at 5 [p.m.] in Barsema Hall as a result of a classroom crunch,” Stoddard said. “Teaching at 5 doesn’t bother me, but I suspect it bothers some students.”

The classroom space issue is an ongoing concern and can’t be let go, Stoddard said. Though the general consensus on campus is to not tear down Cole Hall, Stoddard said he could see the building torn down in the event that a new building would be cheaper than a remodel.

Additional Briefs

The NIU Proton Therapy Center was authorized to proceed with funding by the Board of Trustees and will see its first patient in 2010, Nancy Castle, allied health and communicative disorders professor, said.

The authorization to proceed with funding is an important step for the NIU Proton Therapy Center because it is a hurdle that the other planned center has not passed, Stoddard said.

Reconstruction of parking lot 24 was approved by BOT, Castle said. The lot is near the Human Resources Building, which is located close to Lincoln Highway and Stadium Drive.