Lang Family Commitment, Challenge to Renovate Music Building

Dear Students, Faculty, and Staff,

At Saturday’s Board meeting, Manager Jane Lang ‘67 announced that she and her niece Lucy Lang ‘03 would designate $7 million from her father Eugene Lang’s Fund for the Future to upgrade and renovate the Lang Music Building. They also issued a challenge of their own: if the College could raise an additional $1 million dollars, they would give $1 million more, raising the total to $9 million.

Their decision energized their fellow Managers, who erupted into applause and gave them a standing ovation. Emeritus Manager Samuel Hayes ‘57 then surprised the group by pledging $100,000 to the renovation effort. In quick succession, John Chen ’76, P’19, David Singleton ’68, P’99, David Bradley ’75, H’11, and David McElhinny ’75, P’17 each committed the same.

The renovation, expected to be take place during the summer of 2020, will allow the College to:

  • Replace the building’s entire heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system, which will create three new zones of control in the concert hall, as well as the ability to properly humidify/dehumidify the building throughout the year to properly maintain instruments.  
  • Stabilize the climate conditions in the Underhill Music & Dance Library for maintenance of the collections.
  • Replace the roof.
  • Replace the 3rd and 4th floor restrooms, create accessible restrooms for the public, and replace the original piping throughout the building.
  • Modify and improve the concert hall egress routes.
  • Replace the front entrance and ADA doors.
  • Modify the Presser Room, currently an under-used rehearsal space, to create a flat-floored, acoustically separated rehearsal space with storage.
  • Restore the pipe organ following HVAC replacement.

We are incredibly grateful for Jane and Lucy’s commitment to leading by example. We are all inspired by their love for the College and their desire to ensure that our students continue to enjoy a world-class liberal arts education.

I look forward to sharing more news about this exciting project.

Sincerely,

Valerie Smith

President