“Campbell Hall wasn’t just a dorm, it was a home away from home where we all felt like family,” Carla Murphy recalled her time in Campbell Hall. The dormitory housed thousands while it was online at UNI. The university announced this semester that Campbell Hall would be torn down in the coming years, presumably sometime over a summer break, so as to not disrupt teaching.
What was once Campbell Hall will become greenspace on campus, and the physical memories of the hall will be razed. But, the history of the hall and the memories of its residents live on through those who share their stories of living there. From one of the first groups of residents in the all-female hall, to resident assistants who helped keep the hall safe during the COVID-19 pandemic, Campbell Hall housed generations of Panthers. While the building’s physical presence on campus will fade, the everlasting presence of memories will press on.
Formerly known as North Hall
Originally called North Hall, the Board of Regents approved the women’s dormitory for construction and furnishing in 1950. The hall would house junior and senior women attending UNI, to accommodate the post-war education boom and the attraction the Iowa State Teachers College was garnering amongst women. The North Hall dormitory wasn’t ready for student living until the fall academic year of 1952, a full year after its original finish date. The original first residents of North Hall would spend the 1951-1952 academic year in Lawther Hall, doubled up with the female residents of Lawther. In May of 1952, just three months before the first residents of North Hall would move into the brand new dorm, the Iowa Board of Education moved to rename the hall to Campbell Hall, after Sadie B. Campbell, who served at the UNI Dean of Women. She would retire that July, after dedicating 23 years of her career to the women of UNI.
Alumnae Sandra Hoelzen describes living in Campbell Hall after living in both Bartlett and Lawther in the early 1960s as “pure luxury.” Although Hoelzen only spent nine weeks residing in Campbell Hall, her time cut short due to student teaching, Hoelzen echoes Murphy’s statement, calling the hall home. “I remember it as being more ‘like home’ if that is possible,” Hoelzen told the Northern Iowan.
Campbell Hall ties generations of women together through a lineage of camaraderie. Graduates from the 1960s to 2021 all use one word to describe the historic building: “home.” The walls that will eventually be torn down hold the memories of laughter, holes from posters and photos nailed into the wall, desks that students have poured over working on final projects or studying for their next exam.
Making your own fun in Campbell Hall
The hall even “went Greek” in 1981, with resident Roxanne Vincent piloting the mock Greek society U Beta Nunna in Campbell. Northern Iowan feature reporter Dan Nierling originally reported on U Beta Nunna’s effort to improve Campbell Hall’s overall image in September of 1981, which included an open house on the night of the induction ceremony.
U Beta Nunna is just one of many shenanigans that the women of Campbell Hall got involved in over the course of the 70 years that the building housed Panthers. Elizabeth Kelsey graduated from UNI in 2021, and lived in Campbell Hall during her self-described “rocky” freshman year. “I laughed at the sight of dozens of plastic cups filled with water that had been placed outside one of the nearby boys’ doors as a booby trap, in retaliation for some other crazy freshman prank,” said Kelsey.
Laura Stanish, served as a resident assistant during Campbell Hall’s final years housing Panthers, from 2019 to 2021. During her time as an RA, Stanish depicted the shenanigans that she got up to, “One of my first memories in the building was playing hide and seek and hiding in an electrical closet, squeezing behind the electrical box in there,” Stanish told the Northern Iowan. Stanish and her resident assistant friends pursued fun and laughter during their time in Campbell Hall, she continues, “Other highlights include catching a gerbil in one of my residents’ rooms, the Tom Petty shrine that some freshman boys put together after his death, riding the forbidden elevator and getting into a Twitter fight on the Campbell Hall account with Hagemann Hall, before DOR [University Housing and Dining, formerly known as the Department of Residence] made us delete the tweets, although I still have the screenshots, before writing them a nice Valentine’s Day poem to make up for it.”
Campbell Hall has a rich history of students creating fun out of thin air within the dorm hall. One of the UNI traditions, the Interlude, was born in Campbell Hall. Ian Goldsmith, Tyler Wright and Scott Connerley conceptualized and filmed the dance in Campbell Hall. The dance soon took off, with first lady of the time, Michelle Obama, and former Governor Terry Branstad even participating in the dance. The instruction video, filmed in Campbell Hall, will forever memorialize the student’s fun and creativity, which spread throughout the dormitory.
Forming forever relationships
While students made their own fun in the dorm, they also formed friendships and relationships that have lasted a lifetime. Alumni have found their husbands and wives through Campbell Hall, as well as members of their wedding parties. Connie Hansen is a former resident of Campbell Hall, and works in the Student Involvement and Events Services Office as the Associate Director. Hansen has worked in various roles at UNI since her graduation, dedicating over 20 years of her life to the university. Hansen’s entire family is deeply entwined with the university and Campbell Hall, with her two children both choosing to live in Campbell during their time at UNI. Her daughter eventually went on to marry her brother’s freshman year roommate. “My son always says ‘Panther Picks really works!’” Hansen laughed. Hansen and her daughter are two of many Panthers who found their significant other in the dorm.
It wasn’t just romantic relationships that built Campbell Hall and its legacy, it’s the connections that residents made with each other and the university itself. Hansen recalls the Tara House return rate being nearly 100%, with residents just waiting to be able to return to their home-away-from-home community. “We just wanted to come back to our communities,” said Hansen. “It was such a special thing to find your people on campus, and once you found them, something just clicked.”
According to Amy Stoermer, Panther Picks also connected residents to forever friendships in Campbell. Stoermer decided to enroll in the random roommate assignment program in the fall of 1995, and the Panther Picks system had selected Cindy, a sophomore at UNI. According to Stoermer, after she had met Cindy, the rest was history. “We moved into our 3rd floor room, had our dads build us the long loft, and we made the place our own. Being away from home for the first time wasn’t always easy, but Cindy took me under her wing, even calling me her ‘Little Baby Freshman,’” said Stoemer. “ There were SO many great memories made in that building.” Stoermer said that eventually, Cindy met her husband that year. In 1998, they were married, and Stoermer showed up for Cindy as one of her bridesmaids. “I met so many amazing young women, it was still an all-girls dorm at the time, and made such great memories in that building while I was there,” said Stoermer.
Hansen also recalled warm days in the Campbell Hall courtyard, when residents would lay out in the sun and pretend to do homework. “Everyone would put their radios in their windows and tune to the same radio station, so it was really loud and everyone could hear the music,” Hansen said. “There was always music playing, it was always just so much fun.”
Meghan and Drew Papke also met in Campbell Hall. “My husband and I have a special connection to the building – we met there in 2004. He lived in Campbell Hall for all four years of his college experience, while I stayed there for two years as a transfer student,” Meghan told the Northern Iowan.
The Papke’s returning to Campbell Hall helps prove Hansen’s assertion that residents wanted to return to their communities – something Hansen thinks is missing from resident hall communities in more recent years. “Residence halls are a little different now, but Campbell was always just a little different. The connections that I had in Campbell at that time, those weren’t connections people were making even in Bender at that time,” said Hansen. “There was something special about Campbell.”
Murphy echoed Hansen’s sentiments regarding the community that was cultivated in the hall. “I loved Anatevka House. We would gather in hallways to talk or have fun competitions. We decorated doors for birthdays or special occasions. Every year we created house t-shirts to wear around campus,” said Murphy. “One year we worked as a team and painted a new wall mural for our house. We had a mural down at one end of the floor, but the landing at the main stairs didn’t have anything to indicate our house from the other house we shared a floor with, so visitors were always getting lost.”
According to Murphy, it was the involvement in the residence experience that made her time in Campbell and at UNI that much more enjoyable. “We loved having a dining hall in the building, especially in the winter so we didn’t have to walk outside to go eat. I remember many of the Greek members would dine there too,” said Murphy. “I had a few people on my floor who worked in the dining hall. By having a dining hall in our building, it allowed for floors to do special events such as house dinners where we could dress up and have different formal dining experiences as well.” Whether it was the rotary phones on the wall in the Anatevka House or suntanning in the Campbell courtyard, Murphy accredits her time in Campbell to the connections she made while she was an undergraduate student.
While connections were bountiful in Campbell Hall, Hansen says that the rarity of these networks, juxtaposed with their abundance in Campbell, made the dorm a hub that shaped student leadership. “You can trace back student leaders and leaders on our campus today, a lot of them came from Campbell,” said Hansen. “I think that just speaks to the impacts of the residence hall and how it still continues to shape the UNI community.”
Sadie B. Campbell’s everlasting legacy
While the legacy of former Campbell Hall residents continue to shape the future of the UNI community, it was Campbell’s legacy that created a need for what was once known as North Hall. Campbell served as UNI’s Dean of Women from 1929 to 1952, where she evolved the teaching program while the university was still called the Iowa Teacher’s College. Her legacy was so impactful that ultimately, the Iowa Board of Education moved to name the hall after her. Campbell ultimately passed in 1965. But, even after her passing, her legacy lived on in the all-girls hall.
“There was this portrait of her that hung in the dorm,” said Hansen. “And it was like, no matter where you were standing in the room, she was looking at you … I’m not saying that Campbell Hall is haunted by any means, but her presence was felt by the women who lived there.” Hansen affectionately dubbed Campbell as “Sadie B.” while discussing her legacy on UNI’s students and campus. “You can tell she was a powerhouse, I think it speaks to her impact on education in Iowa, especially for women, to have a residence hall named after you here.”
In her time as the Dean of Women at UNI, Campbell travelled to places like England and California to vacation and attend conferences regarding the education of women. The 1951 edition of the Old Gold was dedicated to Campbell. Her dedication reads, “Under the direction of Miss Campbell and the residence directors, the dorms are organized to aid the girls in living and working together democratically. Miss Campbell tries to keep these dorms as comfortable and pleasant as possible. In addition to all of these jobs, Miss Campbell is ever ready to counsel any of the co-eds and strives to help them become happier and better adjusted college people. In this way Miss Campbell serves the interest of all students as individuals and as groups. With such a full time job, Miss Campbell has had very little time to develop her own interests, however, she has traveled widely. Several years ago she visited Guatemala and two years ago she enjoyed a very interesting tour of Europe. Miss Campbell still calls Greeley, Colorado, home and maintains a cabin in the mountains near there. It is with gratitude for these 21 years of whole-hearted service to all students at the Teachers College, that we dedicate this 1951 Old Gold to Sadie B. Campbell.”
Campbell’s dedication to the cultural advancement of Iowan women is detailed through the UNI archives, and felt by former Campbell residents. It was Campbell’s responsibility to ensure the comfort and care of each of the women enrolled at UNI, which increased significantly after the World War II education boom. The 1945 Old Gold details Campbell’s responsibilities. “In addition to her various duties as Dean of Women, Miss Campbell serves on the Student Welfare Committee, and helps solve problems in the Commons Food Service, advises the Student Council and maintains numerous committees for the smooth running of the activities for college women. As dean, she advises the Women’s League, and supervises all women’s housing to see that each girl finds comfortable and adequate living quarters in the modern women’s dormitories.”
As dean, Campbell was typically the first administrative face that women at UNI saw, as she guided them through the housing and orientation processes. She remained their go-to administrative point of contact as the female students navigated their time at UNI, advising multiple committees and student organizations. Campbell maintained high standards and expectations for the women at UNI. “We joked often, when we would do something that wasn’t the most classy thing in the world, ‘Sadie B. is watching!’” Hansen laughed. “She was an incredibly classy lady and although she might have looked down at our shenanigans, we could still feel the weight of her impact decades later.”
A farewell to Campbell Hall
The building that’s stood tall for decades on the corner of 23rd Street will come down in the coming years, but the legacy that Campbell and all of those who felt her presence while living in the residence hall will live on through UNI’s campus. While the physical reminder of these memories may vanish, the presence of its legacy cannot be razed. ‘64 graduate Hoeltzen says, “I am sad that the university is ‘taking it down,’ but I will have my memories. It has aged and so have I. I will miss seeing it, but I have my memories and no one can take that away.”
Alumni testimony
Casey Ray
Hi,
I went to UNI for 2011-2012 year and lived in Ferrell House in Campbell Hall. I think my favorite memory was playing capture the flag with another house. Unfortunately I got injured but it was a good time.
-Casey Ray (at the time of UNI, my name was Casey Sheets)
Meghan and Drew Papke
Hello,
I hope this message finds you well. I was recently informed that The Northern Iowan is creating a special issue to commemorate Campbell Hall, and I would love to contribute. My husband and I have a special connection to the building – we met there in 2004. He lived in Campbell Hall for all four years of his college experience, while I stayed there for two years as a transfer student. We would be delighted to share our stories and photos for this special issue.
Please let me know if you’d be interested in including our contributions.
Kind regards,
Meghan Papke
LYHS Class of 2006
Amy Stoermer
Hello! I’m writing in response to the request for photos and memories of Campbell Hall. I’m currently a (very non-traditional!) UNI student, working towards my Master’s in Social Work through the Distance Education Program. However, my UNI story began in the fall of 1995. I had decided to sign up for dorm living, and to be randomly matched with another student. This resulted in one of the best friendships of my life. My “matched” roommate, Cindy, was going into her sophomore year, and we became fast friends. We moved into our 3rd floor room, had our dads build us the long loft, and we made the place our own. Being away from home for the first time wasn’t always easy, but Cindy took me under her wing (even calling me her “Little Baby Freshman” ). There were SO many great memories made in that building. Cindy ended up meeting her future husband that year, and in 1998, I was a bridesmaid in their wedding. I met so many amazing young women (it was still an all-girls dorm at the time) and made such great memories in that building while I was there. My heart breaks a little to know that the building will be taken down soon, but the heart of Campbell Hall will live on in those of us who had the pleasure of living there.
(Photos: Cindy and me – on the right – on one of the first days we lived together, the view of a rare mid-April snowfall from my room in Campbell circa 1996, and celebrating a Campbell Hall neighbor’s birthday).
Thank you so much for doing this! ~Amy (Hove) Stoermer
Elizabeth Kelsey
Hi, my name is Elizabeth Kelsey, and I graduated from UNI in 2021. During my college career, I spent two years as the News Editor for the Northern Iowan (depending on who’s reading this email, I may have met you recently at the INA convention!).
I just wanted to respond to the call for memories of Campbell Hall in the wake of the announcement that it will be torn down.
I lived in Campbell during my freshman year, one of the last years that it was used for full-time residents, and though the building was old, it was the perfect place for a homesick freshman.
I have so many fond memories of Campbell, from the hours I spent walking around the courtyard chatting on the phone with my parents to the eagerness with which I checked the mailbox in hopes of finding a letter from a friend at another college.
I laughed at the sight of dozens of plastic cups filled with water that had been placed outside one of the nearby boys’ doors as a booby trap, in retaliation for some other crazy freshman prank.
I practiced the piano in the main lounge as I developed the confidence to serve as an accompanist at church. (I may also have practiced a tad bit too early in the morning, according to the front desk staff … what can I say, I’m an early riser!)
I slid down the incline to Rialto in the icy winter weather and tried to ignore the kids from the Towers who had come to breakfast in their pajamas without having to set foot outside.
I even dragged a mini fridge back from Rialto to my room on my very first night of college, after winning it in a round of bingo at a new student event. Since we already had a mini fridge, it became the world’s biggest doorstop for about a week until we returned it to the store and kept the cash!
I could go on, but the point is, although I lived in Campbell for only one year, the building will always hold a special place in my heart. Perhaps because it had been lived in by so many people before me, it had a homelike feeling that comforted me and made me feel I’d landed somewhere safe during my sometimes-rocky first year of college. I’m eternally grateful that it — and the people in it — were a part of my early days at UNI.
Hope this helps! Let me know if you need anything else. If you’re seeking pictures, I’d be happy to send some your way!
Take care,
Elizabeth Kelsey
Laura Stanish
I saw someone’s LinkedIn post about sending stories/photos in for Campbell Hall — I lived in there as an RA for its last two years in 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 (we even made our own custom Campbell Hall sweatshirts!), so I thought I would send over some stuff. It’s such an iconic, unique building and I’m sad to see it go.
I loved having the courtyard for games like 9 square and jello capture the flag, plenty of hide and seek spots (especially in the old cafeteria!) and easy access to a roof (my sharpie signature might still be there) and the tunnels underneath campus haha. One of my first memories in the building was playing hide and seek and hiding in an electrical closet, squeezing behind the electrical box in there. Other highlights include catching a gerbil in one of my residents’ rooms, the Tom Petty shrine that some freshman boys put together after his death, riding the forbidden elevator and getting into a Twitter fight on the Campbell Hall account with Hagemann Hall (before DOR made us delete the tweets, although I still have the screenshots ) before writing them a nice Valentine’s Day poem to make up for it.
It was also dangerously close to Icon Donuts (before they moved) so there were MANY trips over there while I was in college. Honestly it was in the perfect location for a lot of my favorite places — the tennis courts, WRC, the Hill, 23rd Street Market, hammocking trees and more.
Anyway, hope some of this is usable! It’s been fun going down memory lane as an alum and I’m glad Campbell is getting one last feature in the Northern Iowan.
Thank you,
Sandra Hoelzen
My grandmother Sandra Hoelzen asked me to share a story of her living in Campbell hall for the upcoming article. It is below along with a picture!
After living in Bartlett and Lawther, 1963-1964, living in Campbell was pure luxury! The rooms were bigger and everything was new! I remember after, 60years, a nice dining room and a Christmas when we had a lovely holiday dinner. My time at Campbell was short. In 9 weeks I was off to student teach. I remember it “as being more like home” if that is possible. I am sad that the university is “taking it down,” but I will have my memories. It has aged and so have I will miss seeing it, but I have my memories and no one can take that away. Sandra Jager Hoelzen Class of 1966 SCI
Thank you!
Carla Murphy
Hello Bailey!
This is Carla Murphy (AKA Momma Murph to Erin’s friends-lol!)
I don’t know if this is too late for your piece on Campbell Hall, but thought I’d provide some info and photos just in case. (The photos will be in a separate email). Please use whatever is helpful and edit as needed.
I am an alumni of Campbell Hall. I called it my home from 1989-1992 and it was an all female dorm. I had 2 rooms within that time. I lived on the 4th floor in Anatevka House. (The houses were named after movie places and ours was the town from Fiddler on the Roof.) My first room looked directly out the front, onto the 23rd intersection and the other room was a corner room that had windows that looked out over 23rd as well as Campus street. It was great to be able to see all the people walking by, cars at the intersection or the gravel parking lot across the street (where the parking garage is now) or watch the seasons change. The only bad thing was no elevator, so the stairs became everyone’s exercise tool. You always made sure you had everything before leaving your room as it was a journey to go back.
I loved Anatevka House. We would gather in hallways to talk or have fun competitions. We decorated doors for birthdays or special occasions. Every year we created house t-shirts to wear around campus. One year we worked as a team and painted a new wall mural for our house. We had a mural down at one end of the floor, but the landing at the main stairs didn’t have anything to indicate our house from the other house we shared a floor with, so visitors were always getting lost.
We loved having a dining hall in the building, especially in the winter so we didn’t have to walk outside to go eat. I remember many of the Greek members would dine there too. I had a few people on my floor who worked in the dining hall. By having a dining hall in our building, it allowed for floors to do special events such as house dinners where we could dress up and have different formal dining experiences as well.
Campbell had a nice little courtyard. It was a relaxing place to go read, try for a suntan or just chat. Our floor would grill out or play games when the weather was nice. For earth day we even cleaned it up as a service project.
Our rooms had rotary phones on the wall usually by the door and they had long cords so you could talk in the hall as to not disturb your roommate. One of the favorite room features was the closets. It was a single door with a pull out hanging rack to told lots of clothes. Our lounge areas were used to play games, have movie nights, or even celebrations.
Campbell Hall wasn’t just a dorm, it was a home away from home where we all felt like family. I’m sad to see it leave campus, but I’m grateful for the memories it holds for myself and so many others.
