Photo by Rose Martin '27. A sign on Skinner Green asks students to allow the grass to recover following the geothermal project.
By Nina Sydoryk ’25
News Editor
Anyone who has stepped foot on the campus recently has likely taken stock of the various sections that are currently under renovation. Big changes are underway at Mount Holyoke College and some remnants from its past have been uncovered in the process.
At the end of the 2023 spring semester, the College’s administration announced a bold new geothermal energy project that would work to replace a 100-year-old fossil fuel system, thereby reducing the College’s carbon emissions by 80 percent. The project will be implemented over a seven-year period, which began in May 2023 and is slated to culminate in 2030.
Now, as students return to campus for the 2023-24 academic year, they can expect to notice the project’s impact — both on exterior and interior locations around campus.
The project’s 2023 summer initiative saw 100-year old-steam pipes replaced by distribution piping that runs from the Kendade Science Complex, to Safford and Skinner Halls. The construction required a depth of four to six feet to be dug in relevant areas around these buildings. As a result, Skinner Green, a staple of Mount Holyoke student life, was closed during first-year move-in and orientation. Now, all excavation work pertaining to this summer phase has been completed, and Skinner Green is once again open.
According to Karla Youngblood, associate vice president for facilities management, 75 percent of phase 1a equipment has, as of time of publication, been installed. In addition, phase 2 of the project has been designed.
Students can expect an extensive update on the status of the project to be published on the geothermal energy project webpage sometime in the near future. In an email to Mount Holyoke News, this incoming update was confirmed by Angie Gregory, the sustainability program manager at the Miller Worley Center for the Environment.
This update will include further information on learning opportunities within the project for students and faculty, especially in the fields of geological study and campus history. Notably, excavation work on July 18 resulted in the discovery of a portion of foundation from the original seminary building, along with several artifacts such as glass bottles and pieces of pottery. The artifacts are now in the possession of the College’s Archives and Special Collections.
Photo by Rose Martin '27. Skinner Green has been fenced off to allow grass to grow back after summer work on the project.
The fall 2023 semester will see the remainder of phase 1 completed as new equipment continues to be installed in the buildings where new piping has been connected. Modern equipment at the building level is set to provide air conditioning in buildings that did not previously include it. The majority of this work is not expected to cause disturbances to the College community, as work will occur primarily within mechanical rooms. Landscaping for relevant areas of campus has been restored, and new grass on Skinner Green continues to grow.
Students are encouraged to be mindful and respectful of designated work areas and temporary barriers. Students are also asked to be alert and aware of larger utility vehicles as they traverse campus.