Kemp Hall 20th Anniversary

November 13, 2007

We are here to celebrate both International Week and the 20th Anniversary of I-House, a facility that symbolizes our commitment to an educational experience that transcends oceans and continents.  Today we welcome alumni, friends and area officials who recognize the importance of our role in a global community; a role Illinois Wesleyan University strives to advance. Today we celebrate more than a building, but the people and the memories that make it exceptional. 

- The beginnings of the great adventure reach back into Illinois Wesleyan’s history. The classic-revivalist mansion was finished in the early 1900s, built by A.E. DeMange, a prosperous Bloomington citizen and owner of the Inter-Urban Trolley. DeMange sold the property to Illinois Wesleyan University in 1912.

- The house became Kemp Hall, named for Illinois Wesleyan’s eighth president Theodore Kemp, who served from 1908 to 1922.  President Kemp gave his personal note to secure the $65,000 property.

- Throughout the University’s long history, Kemp Hall has served as a dormitory to both women and men, a dining hall, and administrative offices.  Kemp has been a rallying point for the University, a key path for parades, celebrations and for serving the nation.  The Hall became the headquarters for the Student Army Training Corps.  During World War I and was used by the Navy as a V-5 training facility during World War II.

- Kemp Hall continued the tradition of serving the University when it was renamed Kemp Hall/International House in 1987. The ceremony dedicating the house included flags from the nations represented on campus by international students and a United Nations flag. Illinois Wesleyan students now refer to the building as I-House.

- Darcy Greder was Director of Residential Programs when planning began for the International House that now celebrates its 20th anniversary.  She chaired the I-House Committee that developed the programming, recruited the first students and staff, and worked over the years to fine-tune the role of I-House in the residential life of the University.   On behalf of the International Office and the University, I am pleased to offer this framed photo of I-House to Darcy as a lasting memory of her work.