2.11.2 Physical Resources

The institution has adequate physical resources to support the mission of the institution and the scope of its programs and services.

Judgment of Compliance

Compliance

Narrative of Justification

Bennett College has adequate physical resources to carry out its mission and supporting programs.  The College defines physical resources as the tangible assets required to accomplish its mission. Therefore, the physical resources are the plant and other assets that are incidental to the learning environment.

Bennett’s fifty-five acre campus is located in Greensboro, North Carolina. Greensboro boasts a number of cultural, social activities and venues just a short distance from the campus. Conveniently located near The Piedmont-Triad International Airport, the campus is easily accessible from Interstates 40 and 85.

The following is a breakdown of all buildings that the College currently operates as a part of the learning environment and by extension the execution of the mission and programs.  A facilities inventory is published annually in the Bennett College Factbook 2007-2008.

Academic Buildings

The academic buildings account for approximately 174,709 square feet of space.  This space is adequate to house the academic programs and to accommodate the teaching and learning on the campus.  Academic buildings are more than adequate to house teaching space and faculty/administrative areas. 

 Black Hall, erected in 1937 as Henry Pfeiffer Science Hall and renamed for Ethel F. Black, a Bennett College trustee, when, in 1967-68, a new Henry Pfeiffer Science Hall was built. It is one of two principal classroom buildings. The building contains the offices of Academic Affairs, The Registrar’s Office, the Division of Social Sciences and Education including the Departments of Business and Economics, Curriculum and Instruction, Political Science and Social Work/Sociology, Journalism and Media Studies

Annie Merner Hall bears the maiden name of Mrs. Henry Pfeiffer and was erected in 1937-38. It currently houses faculty offices, the Student Government Association Offices, and the Center for Teaching, Learning, & Technology (CTLT).

The Children’s House, the Bennett College laboratory preschool, is used as a pre-observational and training site for elementary education majors prior to their official field experiences in a public school setting. The first five-star, licensed child-care facility in Guilford County, the preschool is also used by other departments in the college for students to gain exposure to and experiences in working with young children. The Children's House also serves as a training/field exposure site for the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, Department of Psychology, Department of Political Science and Social Work/Sociology and the Department of Visual and Performing Arts.

The Ida Haslip Goode Health and Physical Education Building is named for a longtime trustee of Bennett College who was also president of the Women's Home Missionary Society of the Methodist Church. The gymnasium contains an Olympic-style swimming pool, a standard basketball court, a combined stage and dance ballet studio, a corrective exercise gymnasium, faculty offices, four classrooms and a seminar conference room. This facility provides classrooms for the Middle College at Bennett, a partnership program with the Guilford County School System.

Henry Pfeiffer Science Building was built in 1968. In addition to classrooms and laboratories, this structure contains four computer laboratories, one electronic classroom, an animal laboratory with an adjacent green house, and the faculty development resource room and faculty lounge.

Pfeiffer Science Computer Laboratories serve all students on campus in a wide variety of disciplines. The computer labs, located on the first floor of Pfeiffer Science Building, are used as electronic classrooms for specific classes as well as for general academic purposes. Among the software available are word processing, spreadsheets, mathematics and statistical programs, computer programming languages, a large test bank, and electronic lecture notes in mathematics and the sciences. The labs are available for student use throughout the day and evening hours.

Shell Hall Complex was built in 1991 and named for Ernest and Juanita Shell, its major donors. This building houses the Department of Journalism & Media Studies and is equipped with state-of-the-art technology to fully support the Journalism & Media Studies degree-program.

Micro Teaching Laboratory for Effective Teaching is housed in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction in Black Hall, is a simulated laboratory equipped with technological capabilities. Designed to enhance the teaching skills of students enrolled in the Teacher Education Program, the Micro-Lab provides opportunities for self-observance, self-assessment, reflection and exposure to best-practice methods, techniques, and materials prior to actual engagement in pre-professional practicum and student teaching experiences.

Food Science and Nutrition Laboratory is funded by Department of Defense and designed to promote and extend research within the Bennett College Food Science and Nutrition courses in cooperation with the Department of Chemistry. Located on the third floor of the Pfeiffer Science Building, this facility is a state-of-the-art diagnostic laboratory.

Residential Buildings

 The College has a total of six (6) residence halls for housing our predominantly residential student body.  All of the rooms in the residence halls, with a few exceptions, are double occupancy.  Each room is equipped with a regular twin-sized bed, dresser, closet, desk, chair, phone jack, and Ethernet connection for each occupant. In addition there is one cable connection and micro-fridge per room. 
While amenities may vary from hall to hall, they generally include kitchen, laundry facility, parlor, computer lab and meeting areas:

Robert E. Jones Residence Hall, erected in 1922, is named for the first black minister elected as a general superintendent with full Episcopal responsibilities in the Methodist Church

Pfeiffer Residence Hall, constructed in 1924, was the nucleus of the current Bennett College campus and the first of five structures that bear some variation of the names of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Pfeiffer, the institution's most generous early benefactors.

Jessie M. Reynolds Residence Hall, erected in 1948, was named for Mrs. Reynolds, a Bennett College trustee from 1936-1948 and president of the Woman's Division of Christian Service of the Methodist Church from 1940 – 1948.

Laura H. Cone Residence Hall was erected in 1961 62. Mrs. Laura Cone, for whom the building is named, was a Bennett College trustee and chairperson of the Trustee Committee on Buildings and Grounds.

Willa B. Player Residence Hall, the largest residence hall, was named for the first woman president of Bennett College (1955 – 66) and occupied for the first time in the fall of 1967.

 Non Academic Buildings

The College has a total of eight (8) non academic buildings on the campus. 

Alumnae House, the oldest structure on campus, was built in 1915. It is used to house alumnae activities and offices.

Wilbur F. Steele Hall, erected in 1922, is named for Reverend Wilbur Steele, President of Bennett from 1881 to 1889.

John H. Race Administration Building, erected in 1925 and is named for a Methodist Church Publishing House official and trustee of Bennett College. It houses Business and Finance, Human Resources and Administrative Services.

Thomas F. Holgate Library was erected in 1939 and is named for a former trustee of Bennett College. It was a gift [from] the General Education Board of the Methodist Church. Renovations to this building were completed in 2004.

Annie Merner Pfeiffer Chapel and Little Theater, erected in 1941 forms the north boundary of the quadrangle around which most of the major buildings cluster.

Carnegie Building, formerly a branch library of the City of Greensboro, was acquired by Bennett College in 1967 and renovated for use as a center for outreach programs. This facility houses the Truth and Reconciliation Archives.

The President’s Home forms the south base of the college quadrangle and was constructed in 1955.

.Rose Catchings Complex, built in 1981, houses the Office of the President; the Office of the Executive Vice President of the College; Student Health Services, Counseling Center and, temporarily, the Office of the JBC Diversity Institute.

 David D. Jones Student Union, erected 1949 – 1950, was named for David D. Jones, president of the college from 1926-1955, and is said to have been the first building erected as a student union on a predominantly black college campus in North Carolina. It houses the dining hall, central storeroom, bookstore, snack bar, post office, and recreational areas as well as the offices of the Student Affairs, Financial Aid, Career Services, Residence Life, and Student Activities.

In conclusion, the College has the necessary physical resources to carry out the mission and objectives by providing students a comfortable learning experience.  Both academic and non academic buildings are adequate to house all necessary functions on the campus.

Supporting Documents

SOURCE	LOCATION/Special Instructions
College FactBook 2007-2008	Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Research