The Waleska Campus
The Reinhardt Main Campus in Waleska, Georgia, incorporates academic facilities, playing fields, and residence halls with Lake Mullenix, a small spring-fed setting for relaxation and instruction; an arboretum, one of the finest and most varied collections of plants on the Eastern seaboard; and an historic preservation complex. Most of the campus’s 525 acres remain in their natural state. The city of Waleska is located just 45 minutes northwest of downtown Atlanta and within easy driving distance of the metro area’s many educational, cultural, and recreational resources.
Academic and Administrative Facilities
The George M. Lawson Academic Center contains classrooms, offices for the Office of the Vice President of Academic Affairs, the humanities faculty, the McCamish School of Business, two computer classrooms, and a student lounge. Also housed in the Lawson Center is the Academic Support Office, Reinhardt’s accommodation program that ensures access and support for students with documented disabilities.
The William W. Fincher Jr. and Eunice L. Fincher Visual Arts Center, a beautiful Italian Renaissance-designed building, houses the Herbert I. and Lilla W. Gordy Department of Art, and contains studios for photography, drawing, sculpture, painting, printmaking, and computer animation, as well as gallery space and offices for the art faculty. The Randolph W. Thrower Plaza is the area sometimes used for receptions and gatherings and faces Lake Mullenix and the Falany Performing Arts Center. A small ceramics studio completes the institution’s facilities dedicated to the study of fine art.
The renovated Samuel C. Dobbs Science Hall is the oldest academic building on campus. Constructed of locally quarried stone, it contains lecture rooms, teaching laboratories, and offices for math and science faculty. The Science Center, which is connected to Dobbs Hall, opened in fall 2013. Classrooms and laboratories have scientific equipment and instructional technology to ensure that students have the best instruction with experiences to prepare them for future study of science or for entry into the contemporary scientific workplace.
The Burgess Administration Building houses the Hoke O’Kelley Auditorium and offices for the president, registrar, financial aid, business office, finance and administration, human resources, support services, information technology, and the Office of Institutional Research and Effectiveness.
Prospective undergraduate students are welcomed by the Admissions staff and the homey atmosphere of the Admissions House, located at the corner of Baxter Avenue and Reinhardt College Parkway. Built in the early 1900s, it is the oldest nonacademic building on campus and was the original Reinhardt President’s Home. It was also the site of the first telephone in Waleska in 1904.
The Hill Freeman Library and Spruill Learning Center houses a collection of 73,000 books, periodicals, and media. Our online catalog provides access to over 150,000 electronic books, and our web site provides access to over 150 databases and 35,000 digital full-text periodicals.
Library staff provides a full range of services including reference and research assistance, circulation assistance, and instruction in information technology and information literacy. The Library also provides Interlibrary Loan, a service for our users where we can borrow books or journal articles from academic, public, or private libraries throughout the U.S. and the world.
Originally dedicated in 1969, the Library was expanded, renovated and rededicated as the Hill Freeman Library and Spruill Learning Center in November 2003. Additional renovations were completed during the summer of 2017 to expand learning spaces for student engagement and success. The renovated facility features a wellequipped information commons, quiet study areas, group study rooms, a large meeting room, a classroom, and the very popular 24/7 afterhours library.
In addition to the general collection, other collections of interest include the Triplett Memorial Military History Collection, the music library, the children’s books collection, the University Archives, and the leisure reading collection
The Library also houses the Center for Student Success, which provides tutorial help, placement services, and assistance in goal setting, time management, organizational skills, and study skills.
The Floyd A. and Fay W. Falany Performing Arts Center contains Flint Hall, a state-of-the-art concert venue, with adjustable acoustical components, a thrust stage, a green room, dressing rooms, and a balcony area, as well as the C. Kenneth White ’61 Atrium. The building houses the School of the Arts, including the Eulene Holmes Murray Department of Music, the Galt Family Instrumental Rehearsal Hall, the R. Stevens and Virginia Horne Tumlin Choral Room, classrooms, choral and instrumental rehearsal halls, studios, and soundproof practice rooms for music instruction. The Ken White Music Center added practice rooms, faculty studios, and a classroom, and doubled the space available for the performing arts.
The McCamish Media Arts Center, on the communication wing in the Falany Performing Arts Center, includes Communication and Media Studies faculty offices and classrooms, as well as media production studios and labs for recording, editing, producing, and disseminating projects using television, audio, still photography, web design, and digital graphic media.
The Reinhardt University Theater includes a flexible 300-seat black box performance space including state-of-the art technology; the Joan U. McFather Studio – a teaching studio/classroom; a dance studio; a green room; and faculty offices, plus all the amenities students need to prepare and preform shows. Reinhardt University Theater also is home to a stunning Conservatory overlooking Lake Mullenix, a space that is available for campus and community events.
The Fred H. and Mozelle Bates Tarpley Education Center, connected to the George M. Lawson Academic Center, includes classrooms, the Moore Chapel, and the Moore Plaza. It also houses offices for Humanities faculty in the College of Humanities, Sciences and Technology.. A collection of the honor code plaques signed by the last four entering classes hangs in the middle floor atrium.
The Price School of Education faculty offices are on the main level of Paul W. Jones Hall.
Education classrooms and a lounge occupy the lower level, and residential rooms for students are on the top floor.
The offices for Advancement and Alumni are in the University’s new Welcome Center across from the Hagan Chapel. This building also houses offices for marketing and communications.
Athletic and Recreational Facilities
The John Rollins Wellness Complex encompasses all the athletic facilities on campus. Renovations to the James and Sis Brown Athletic Center expanded the main gymnasium, doubling its seating capacity to 1,000. The Brown Center, together with the Joseph W. Baxter Recreation Center, includes locker rooms, physical education classrooms, coaches’ and athletic staff offices, a large training room, and concession stand. The Northside HospitalCherokee Fitness Center includes cardio machines and workout equipment. Additionally, the Jack S. Davidson Wellness Center features our wrestling locker room, coaches’ offices, training room, and practice area. The space also includes storage for the marching band. Outdoor facilities include four lighted tennis courts and an intramural field.
The Jim and Syble Boring Sports Complex features the lighted Ken White Baseball and Softball Fields. The J. Thomas and Bettye Jo Isherwood Field House opened in September 2012 with a large weight room, coaches’ offices, and locker rooms for football, baseball, softball, and men’s and women’s soccer. The entire building is outfitted with multiple projectors and televisions for film review.
The Ken White Athletic Field at the University Stadium, an artificial turf field, includes bleacher seating for 1,000, and is the home of soccer, lacrosse, and football. The Ken White Indoor Athletic Facility was added between the field house and softball fields during the summer of 2014. An eagle statue was added to the area during 2015.
Reinhardt Athletics also uses off campus facilities to fulfill practice needs of the tennis, golf, track and field, and cross-country programs. These facilities include the Bridgemill Tennis Complex, Callahan Golf Links, Cherokee High School Track, and Boling Park.
Additional facilities related to recreation include a sand volleyball court, a Frisbee golf course, hiking and biking trails, and several camp sites.
Student Activities, Student Health Services, and Public Safety Facilities
The William “Billy” G. Hasty, Jr. ’67, Linda Nichols Hasty ’90, and Hazel Wyatt Hasty Student Life Center in the heart of the Reinhardt University campus opened in May 2007. The facility includes the Jewell Wyatt Bannister Glasshouse, a popular space for meetings, studying between classes, or meeting friends. The Center houses the campus bookstore, the Rec Room, and Reinhardt Central, which provides games, sporting equipment for checkout, as well as offices for residence life, student government, student activities, and student affairs. The building is connected to the W. Frank and Evelyn J. Gordy Center.
The Student Health Center ane a food pantary are located in Smith Johnston Hall. The Student Health Center offers services to support each student’s pursuit of a healthy life. A nurse is available for regular appointments to treat minor illnesses and injuries and to provide assessment, referral, and preventive care, as well as to share health-related educational materials. A licensed professional counselor offers a broad range of confidential counseling services and is a resource for referral to a community counselor and/or other mental health services professionals. Professional services are offered by appointment.
The Office of Public Safety is located in the lower level of the East Apartments. This office provides student ID cards, campus parking permits and keys. Public Safety officers are on duty on a 24 hour/7 day a week basis to answer calls for service and patrol the campus.
Religious Facilities
The Blanche Hagan Chapel, a lovely Georgian house of worship, serves as the chapel for the Reinhardt community and the home of the Waleska United Methodist Church.
The Moore Prayer Chapel in Tarpley Education Center provides a quiet place for prayer, worship, fellowship, and study.
Reynolds Wayside Chapel is a picturesque outdoor chapel nestled just off the walking path in the center of campus and is a place to stop along the way, to reflect and pray.
Worship services are also often held in the Bannister Glasshouse in the Hasty Student Life Center.
Dining and Meeting Facilities
The W. Frank and Evelyn J. Gordy Center, originally opened in 1984, was completely renovated and the dining hall was expanded by more than two-thirds its former size during the Summer of 2018.
Residence Halls
The university’s residence halls can provide living accommodations for over 800 students. These residence halls include: Herbert I. and Lilla W. Gordy Hall; Smith Johnston Hall; Roberts Hall; two apartment-style residence halls (East Hall and West Hall); Glen and Marjorie Humphrey Hubbard Blue and Gold Halls; and the most recent addition, Eagles View Residence Hall.
Roberts Hall houses men in varied sized suites; each suite has a living room.
Smith Johnston Hall houses women in two-room suites with connecting baths. It has a large lounge and laundry facilities.
Herbert I. and Lilla W. Gordy Hall houses female and male students in a mixture of fourbedroom suites, with a limited number of single rooms available.
East and West Apartments accommodate female and male students. The two- and four- bedroom units are fully furnished and come equipped with a common area and full kitchen.
Glenn and Marjorie Humphrey Hubbard Blue and Gold Halls offer double occupancy rooms with private restrooms, and each two rooms share a study area.
Eagles View Hall houses both male and female students. The rooms are double occupancy rooms with private restrooms, and a shared study area. Housed in Eagles View are Living Learning Communities, which are communities of students living together where they connect and engage with others who have similar interests.
Other University Facilities and Points of Interest
The Evelyn Gordy Hospitality House was first constructed on Piedmont Road in Atlanta. Purchased by Reinhardt alumnus Frank Gordy in 1940, the home was moved to the Reinhardt campus in the early 1990s by Gordy’s wife, Evelyn, a Reinhardt alumna. The historical home, with its generously proportioned rooms, teak floors, and stunning wall coverings, provides a welcoming setting for special functions, events, and overnight visits.
The F. James and Florrie G. Funk Heritage Center is a unique learning, teaching, and study attraction for North Georgia. Since it opened in late 1999, the Center has attracted more than 149,000 visitors to the Reinhardt Campus for school tours, exhibits, and educational programming. The John H. Bennett Sr. and Ethel C. Bennett History Museum, a component of the Center, contains the Clarence and Margaret Rogers Contemporary American Indian Art Exhibit; Southeastern Indian artifacts unearthed in Cherokee County and other sites; the Herbert L. Buffington’41 Gallery, which features changing exhibits; the Sellars Antique Hand Tool Collection with thousands of historic hand tools; the 70-seat Estelle Bennett Hughes Theater; a Museum gift shop; and the Bennett Family history display. Other parts of the Center include an Appalachian Settlement with historic log cabins, a syrup mill, and a blacksmith shop. The Lou Reeta Barton Northcutt Walking Trail, with its wonderful array of native plants, connects the Museum to the Appalachian Settlement. The Georgia State Legislature has designated the Center as “Georgia’s Official Frontier and Southeastern Indian Interpretive Center.” It was certified as a National Park Service “Trail of Tears” interpretive site in 2013. The Center was a recipient of the Governor’s Awards in the Humanities in 2010. It is open to the public, faculty, staff, and students Tuesday through Sunday.
The Reinhardt campus also includes the Hal B. Wansley President’s Home, which provides living and meeting accommodations for the Reinhardt president and his or her family; and the Bratton Carillon, which chimes on the hour and broadcasts messages during emergencies. Dedicated to the memory of Dr. W.M. Bratton, Reinhardt president from 1927-1944, and Lucy, his wife, the memorial also contains the bell which hung near the former Witham Hall from 1912-1950 and replicas of the columns given to Reinhardt by the Class of ’34.
The Norman W. Paschall Plaza in front of the Burgess Administration Building was named for a longtime trustee and past trustee chair. The Donor Plaza includes the names of Reinhardt supporters and is a popular place for campus concerts. The Randall Porter Storage Building and the Upchurch Maintenance Facility provide much needed storage, work, and office space for the University.
The Burgess Echo Garden, the unique sound garden between the library and student life center, was built in 1970 to honor former Reinhardt President Dr. J. Rowland Burgess, Jr. The garden features a circular seat from which one can speak and hear an echo in response. The Burgess Arboretum, which encompasses the entire campus, includes thousands of individually labeled tree and shrub species, and celebrated a grand opening in 2009. Many of plants were tagged by Dr. Burgess. The Arboretum’s index map is housed in the Hill Freeman Library and Spruill Learning Center. Lake Mullenix is a three and one-half acre, spring-fed lake and is a beautiful addition to the Waleska campus. The George W. McClure Water Treatment Facility greatly enhances the University’s opportunity for expansion.