| 1987 |
• The College purchases Christopher House and 10.5 acres of grounds on Woodward Lane and Robinson Road from the Catholic diocese to meet the needs of an expanding Emeritus College and to provide space for further growth. |
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The long-awaited office tower addition to Albertus Magnus Hall of Science begins construction in 1987. |
Excavating for the foundation of the faculty office tower to be added to Albertus Hall in 1987. |
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• A renovation of Albertus Hall is begun, funded by a grant from the Grand Rapids Foundation. The four-storey tower, when dedicated in 1989, contains faculty office space, a Science and Mathematics Division office, meeting rooms and a student lounge. |
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The wall of the 1960 section of Albertus Hall is removed to make way for the 1987 tower addition. |
Renovated Albertus Hall from the south, showing the new black louvered panels which replaced the former salmon pink aluminum from the 1960 construction. |
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| • Underground fiber optic cable is laid in anticipation of computer networking. |
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• Major league baseball-playing alumnus Dave Gumpert, pitching for the Kansas Royals, is elected to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Baseball Hall of Fame. |
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| • Freshman Humanities program initiated. |
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| 1988 |
• The Spectrum Scholarship competition program is begun to attract high-achieving students to Aquinas. Aimed at attracting academic and campus leaders, it offers 5 full scholarships to students who compete in this annual Saturday competition. |
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| • A high-tech IBM ROLM telephone system is installed campus wide, introducing faculty, staff and students to the dubious wonders of phone-mail. |
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To hear an automated message from "Silicon Sal," the official voice of Aquinas' phone-mail, click here. You will be linked to an audio clip from "Historically Speaking: an oral history of Aquinas College." |
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| • July: Officials of Reformed Bible College and Aquinas College agree to the terms of a contract for the sale of the RBC campus to Aquinas for $6 million. This purchase, though costly, adds 11 buildings to the College and connects the main campus with the recently purchased Browne Center (former Christopher House). By fall, 1988, Aquinas students occupy some RBC residence halls. |
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| • October: a campus furor is started when President O'Connor proposes changing the tree as the official logo of the College. |
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| • The College installs the Colleague software system to manage financial and academic records. |
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| 1989 |
• The College celebrates the 20th anniversary of its Continuing Education program which has been a recognized leader in the field of life-long learning. The week-long event featurs receptions in the Academic Building. |
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| • Summer: Aquinas launches $8 million capital campaign called Aquinas College Grows in order to create a freestanding library, to purchase new science instrumentation, and help finance the recent RBC campus purchase. |
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| • October: Monsignor Arthur Bukowski, first president of Aquinas College, dies of congestive heart failure. College classes are suspended on the day of his funeral. |
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| • November: The Aquinas College Child Development Center opens in its first location, on the campus of Marywood. |
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| • The Baldwin Foundation, under the leadership of Ralph Baldwin, contributes $30,000 to the Capital Campaign towards the construction of a new observatory atop Albertus Hall. |
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| • Students continue the College's commitment to social service with Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, and work with Degage Ministries, Habitat for Humanity, and God's Kitchen. |
