In response to uncertainties regarding federal funding, WashU is halting its plans to remodel Mudd Field and to build Riney Hall, according to an article published in The Record. The University will start removing the fencing on Mudd Field in the coming weeks, and the field will fully reopen for regular use at the start of next semester. Construction on Michael W. and Quirsis V. Riney Hall, a new Arts & Sciences building that broke ground this fall, will be paused this week. Despite the halt in construction, University officials expressed interest in revisiting the two projects in the future.

WashU Chancellor Andrew Martin sat down for an interview with Student Life last Thursday, April 3. Martin spoke about University plans regarding federal defunding, on-campus construction, and student advocacy.

Over spring break, a portion of Mudd Field has been fenced off and closed for construction; however, the field will not officially close until after the 2025 commencement.

It’s difficult not to notice the stumps left behind from the cleared trees of Mudd Field. On Jan. 17, WashU announced the reconstruction of Mudd Field in the upcoming years, an endeavour that will close Mudd Field from after this year’s commencement until Fall 2028. While WashU administrators have expressed excitement regarding the project, some students are upset by the prospect of losing Mudd Field for the rest of their time in college

For the next three years, get excited as the view of our beautiful Mudd Field turns into a true mud field … This is all compounded by the fact that most current students will graduate before the finished project is available for them to enjoy and benefit from.

WashU publicly announced its plans to break ground in Spring 2025 on Riney Hall, a new building in Arts & Sciences that was motivated by the ongoing growth of Arts & Sciences programs and departments. 

WashU students were greeted by the Graham Chapel bells upon their arrival to campus this semester, ending three years of intermittent silence caused by a trifecta of lightning strikes. The bells now chime every quarter-hour between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. daily, with the WashU alma mater playing at noon.   

WashU’s Department of Biology unveiled nine newly constructed teaching labs on the second and third floors of Jolley Hall at the start of the semester. These labs will house all introductory biology courses and upper-division labs in the department. The 16,000-square-foot renovation of Jolley replaced seven labs inside Rebstock Hall that will soon be revamped and converted into research labs for 6-8 new faculty hires. 

Arriving at the completed 570,000-square-foot landscape took years of planning, design and construction, about $360 million dollars and multiple teams of architects.

East End construction is on schedule for completion. University Architect James Kolker said that building occupants will be able to move into their new offices over the summer. Construction on McKelvey Hall, the new computer science and engineering building, will continue into fall 2020.