Assembly Hall: courting alumni bank

The long-standing national icon of Big Ten athletics, Assembly Hall, has been renamed.

Cindy Simon Skjodt, daughter of former Indiana Pacers owner Mel Simon, donated $40 million to renovate the facilities.

In return Assembly Hall had its name renovated as well. From now on, it will be known as Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.

The University has stressed multiple times they aren’t rebuilding Assembly Hall — that would cost an outrageous amount, more than $100 million. Instead, the money will be spent upgrading the 42-year-old arena.

Changes will include luxury seating above the bleachers, escalators to replace some ramps, a Jumbotron scoreboard, remodeled restrooms and concession stands, more restrooms and the remodeling of the south lobby into a “grand entryway.”

Now, we understand IU has a reputation to maintain as a beautiful University with equally beautiful facilities. That’s half the allure of IU alone. And the University’s
biggest, most viewed marketing is the men’s basketball team.

However, the Editorial Board believes the University has overlooked what students really want in our Assembly Hall. College students really don’t care about how the bathrooms are modeled or how the new “grand entryway” will look.

IU students don’t need the University to spend money on escalators — we’re college students that walk several miles a day to go to classes. And we certainly won’t notice how nice the luxury seating is, since most of us won’t be able to afford a luxury ticket.
However, one crucial renovation is missing. Ironically, it’s the one renovation students have been asking the University to supply for years.

What Assembly Hall needs is increased student seating.

Current students have had trouble getting seats inside Assembly Hall. It’s unfair and illogical, we feel, to improve seating for alumni elite while leaving current tuition-paying students out in the cold.

The administration may feel like the generous donation will trickle down to help the students, but we just don’t see it. The renovations are all superficial. With the exception of the escalators, none of these renovations really help IU students in any way.

In reality all the University has done is change the name of the arena to show deep-pocketed alumni how the University is willing to bend backward for alumni money.

IU may add swanky seating for the donor when she visits with her friends and family, but your average IU student will likely never see that seating.

While we sincerely thank the Simon Skjodt family for its generous donation, the Editorial Board encourages the University to court money for other projects that will better serve students.

Ballantine Hall would be a good place to start.  

­— opinion@idsnews.com
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