Newly renovated Hartnett Hall opens for select classes
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Minot State University moved forward with a $25 million renovation to Hartnett Hall, its communications, art, English and humanities building, in May 2022. After hitting many bumps in the road along the way, including the need for asbestos removal and some electrical issues, Hartnett Hall officially opened for select classes on Monday.
Although no art or communication classes were able to readily move into Hartnett on Monday, some English courses took place in Hartnett for the first time since 2022.
"It’s really great to be back in the building where I started my journey with Minot State, ” said Grant Gathman, Professional Communication major. "It was kind of frustrating constantly being told we’d be back and then have push backs and delays, but now that we’re finally here it was worth the wait."
Students at Minot State were told Hartnett would be ready to be moved into multiple times, one being in January right after the holidays. However, that was not the case. After so many setbacks students are excited to finally get back to Hartnett Hall this week.
"We are going to try to do our tryouts for the show in Hartnett on Thursday, ” said Neil Roberts, Professional Communication professor. "We hope to have our first show of the semester a week from Thursday."
The Communication Department has a campus television and radio station, both of which have been displaced during the renovation. Like all of the departments in Hartnett, the communication professors and students have had to make do with a makeshift television set up in the lobby of Swain Hall.
While some students are excited to see Hartnett’s facelift in comparison to their previous years at Minot State, others will be seeing Hartnett Hall for the first time.
"Since I'm a transfer I've never seen or been in the old Hartnett, ” said Siriana Gudino, a junior student in Professional Communication. "I heard a lot about it being worked on for longer than it was supposed to, but it looks super nice overall. I am most excited for the TV production room," she said. "Now Hartnett looks so beautiful and modern, it is by far the best building on campus."