The Cupola

The Cupola
Image Source: The Cupola

Nearly thirty years after the 1968 demolition of the cupola-topped Old Austin Building, its crowning architectural detail was given new life through a massive, gazebo-style replica erected on the west end of the campus. The new structure, which quickly came to be known as “the Cupola,” commemorated the school’s rich history as it approached the ninetieth year since its legislative founding in 1907. And as a beacon of unity and solidarity, it came to guide the campus forward into the new millennium and a new century of educational dialogue and service.

The decision to erect the Cupola emerged as an integral expression of Chancellor Richard Eakin’s drive to provide a more handsome, historically integrated campus. Construction of the Cupola occurred in tandem with a major renovation of Joyner Library including addition of Joyner’s Clock Tower and Sonic Plaza, as well as construction of the new Student Recreation Center and the West End Dining Hall. Standing as a pole star amidst these new additions, the Cupola linked past, present, and future.

On the north side of the Cupola are Jarvis Hall, the Old Cafeteria Building, and the Mamie Jenkins Building, the three oldest still extant buildings on campus. Janus-faced, the Cupola itself stands just southeast of the Leo W. Jenkins Fine Arts Center, one of the campus’ newer buildings and the one constructed where Old Austin – originally known as the Administration and Classroom Building – and its cupola stood for six decades.

The cost of the gazebo-cupola was reportedly $250,000. The ECU Telefund was responsible for raising funds necessary for the project. Telefund assistant director Brian Hardy related that students called various groups welcoming donations for the project. Alumni learned that for each $250 gift, a brick engraved with the donor’s name would be placed in the area around the Cupola. Many who could remember Old Austin and its cupola were eager to support the effort. That building, one of the first constructed, had for decades served as the center of campus life. Parents were also generous, seeing the fundraiser as an opportunity to recognize sons and daughters enrolled at ECU.

Following its appearance on the mall, the Cupola became a popular meeting place for informal gatherings and faculty events, as well as a scenic spot for photographs. Reminiscent of the Old Well at Chapel Hill, the Cupola was quickly integrated into successive ECU logos, and remains one featured in the masthead of the student newspaper, The East Carolinian. In 1996, ECU established The Order of the Cupola in recognition of the exceptional generosity of benefactors supporting the university’s drive to achieve greater levels of excellence.

In 2016, the Cupola lent is standing as a symbol of campus unity and solidarity to a newly founded series of open dialogues, known as “Cupola Conversations,” meant to include students, faculty, and members of the community in publicly discussing topics of concern. The first Cupola Conversation, held on September 22, 2016, was entitled, “2016 Summer of Violence: ECU Community Impact,” addressing tragic gun violence in Orlando, Florida and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Launched by the Division of Student Affairs, Cupola Conversations have continued in a “town hall style format” each year since the fall of 2016. In addition to real-time gatherings, they have been streamed live on Facebook as well. Held in various locations on campus including the Mendenhall Student Center and the Science and Technology Building, the conversations seek to “promote a shared understanding of the value of diversity across the spectrum and to create and maintain a civil, welcoming campus climate for everyone.” As an expression of campus unity amidst diversity, the Cupola and the conversations alluding to it have helped provide an important ethical compass for the university.

Sources

Additional Materials

Old Austin Building demolition

 

Cupola on the Mall

Cuploa on the Mall

Citation Information

Title: The Cupola

Author: John A. Tucker, PhD

Date of Publication: 2/5/2020

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