Spotlight
Happy 5th Birthday Wood Hall
February 10 marks the official fifth anniversary of Wood Hall. Read about Wood Hall in the following brief essay, then follow the links below and let the Boley wayback machine take you on a pictorial and literal tour of Wood Hall's construction, dedication by Justice Scalia, and even the protests.
Wood Hall at Lewis & Clark Law School
The day Louise and Erskine Wood Sr. Hall (Wood Hall) opened the size of Lewis & Clark Law School increased by 50 percent. The 45,000 new square feet provided open, picturesque study space, 10 new group-study rooms, two new classrooms, two new seminar rooms, the Nycum Rare Book Room, rooms for offices and clinics, a new computer lab and training lab, and opened up space in the Boley Law Library for new carrels, seating and quiet.
This all added up to more space to think, as Associate Dean for Library Services Peter Nycum said at the time. "The new facilities provide the open space and the visual tranquility to truly promote the thought process," Nycum emphasized. "Wood Hall opens up vistas and unites the building with its forest environment. The magnificent sunsets were always there, but we couldn't see them."
Green Features
Besides the facilities and the view, the building was justifiably lauded for its green features. It was built on an old parking lot, keeping the footprint as small as possible and minimizing its effect on the surrounding forest. During construction 98 percent of construction debris were recycled, stair treads were made from fir trees cleared on site, structural steel, aluminum, gypsum board, ceiling tiles and carpets were made from recycled materials, and the wood veneer was from certified sustainable forests.
"Because we have the best overall environmental and natural resources law program in the country, we think it's appropriate to be in the forefront of the green building movement," said Jim Huffman, Dean of Lewis & Clark Law School. "Wood Hall is a sustainable building with leading-edge technology that this school will be proud to call ours for years to come."
Energy saving features include lighting sensors that automatically activate window shades and lights, a light scoop in the central staircase that brings in daylight, state-of-the-art glass that reduces glare, allows heat inside during winter, and blocks sunlight in summer, cantilevered sun screens that reduce heat gain and heat loss, windows that open to support the natural ventilation system, and high efficiency HVAC controls and equipment.
The project achieved the rare "Silver Standard" of the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards. For more info see To Leed or Not to Leed.
Lousie and Erskine Wood Sr.
Wood Hall is named in honor of the late Louise and Erskine Wood Sr. Erskine was a legendary admiralty lawyer. Born in 1879 in Washington Territory, he lived briefly during his teens with Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce. Erskine graduated from the University of Oregon Law School in 1912, three years before it became Northwestern School of Law. He practiced law until age 98, and died in 1983 at 103. Find out more about Erskine Wood from the exhibit, A Teenager at Chief Joseph's Camp: Erskine Wood at Nespelem, 1892-1893. See also this exhibit brochure.
Louise Wood was born in Minnesota in 1909 and moved to New York City as a young girl. There she became one of the nation's first women insurance brokers. She married Erskine in 1951 and used her business acumen to create investment groups throughout the Northwest. Louise Wood passed away June 28, 2003, at age 94. Her generosity made possible the Erskine Wood Sr. Professor of Law endowed chair and Louise and Erskine Wood Sr. Hall.
Boley Wayback Machine
Construction Slideshows
- Construction Cam - "Time lapse" snapshots taken of Wood Hall under construction
- Construction Slides - Photos taken of the Wood Hall construction between December 2000 and February 2001
Wood Hall Facilities: Brochures, News and Reviews
- Enhanced Law School Facilities Benefit People, Programs, 11 The Lewis & Clark Chronicle No. 2 (Winter/Spring 2002)
- Randy Gragg, A
Northwest Modern Update. The Oregonian, p. E1, (Feb. 2, 2002)
- Brian Libby, Shining Example, Daily Journal of Commerce Infrastructure & Livability Magazine (Sept. 2001) (pdf)
- Soderstrom Architects P.C. Project Profile
- Building the Future of Legal Education, L&C Law building expansion brochure (March, 2000) (pdf)
Dedication of Wood Hall, February 10, 2002
- Wood Hall Dedication Program (Feb. 2002) (pdf)
- Justice Scalia to Speak at Dedication, L&C College Press Release (Feb. 10, 2002)
- Message from President Michael Mooney (Feb. 10, 2002)
- Scalia's Visit Spurs Clash of Ideas, 11 The Lewis & Clark Chronicle No. 2 (Winter/Spring 2002)
- Shelby Oppel and Paige Parker, Scalia
Sticks With the Original in Constitutional Controversy, The Oregonian,
B01 (Feb. 11, 2002)
- Erin Haick and Corey Long, Amid Protest Scalia Shares "Originalist" Views, 66 The Pioneer Log No. 13 (Feb. 22, 2002)
Protest Photos
- Two Photos From Protest, L&C Campus Connections (Feb. 2002)
- Scalia Protest Photos (set), by PDX Dragon, via Portland Independent Media Center (posted Feb. 14, 2002
Wood Hall Today
