By Ashlyn Beck | News Editor
Damage to the exterior of Castellaw Communications Center drew the attention of campus facilities on Thursday afternoon, and the southwest exit of the building has been closed off until further notice.
As the graduating class of 1974 celebrated its 50-year reunion this homecoming, Castellaw Communications Center also celebrated 50 years on campus. The building — dedicated on May 16, 1974 — is home to Baylor’s journalism, public relations and new media, film and digital media and communication departments.
Castellaw Communications Center was named for Jack Pender Castellaw, one of Baylor’s Immortal Ten who lost their lives in a tragic accident on Jan. 22, 1927. The building construction was partially funded by a $700,000 gift by his mother, Lila Jane Castellaw, before her death in 1969, according to a Waco Tribune Herald clipping from May 12, 1964.
But the building doesn’t seem to share the immortality of its namesake. Thursday afternoon, construction workers stood outside Castellaw to inspect issues on the second floor wall facing Moody Library. According to university spokesperson Lori Fogleman, there are no structural or building issues, and campus facilities arrived to investigate “exterior ceiling surface deterioration due to weathering over the years.”
Facilities did not provide an estimated time for when the southwest exit of the building will be usable again.
The wooden pillars and caution tape around the building were noticeable, Phoenix, Md., junior Emma Cefalu said. Students can no longer enter Castellaw by the entrance facing the majority of campus — and students are noticing.
“It’s a little bit of an inconvenience,” Cefalu said. “It really impedes on my ability to get in and out of the building.”
Cefalu said the construction makes her a little nervous to walk around the second floor of Castellaw.
“Seeing the pillars makes me feel like I’m going to fall through the floor,” Cefalu said.
