UI dedicates Stuit Hall, new hub for clinical psychology

IOWA CITY - The University of Iowa on Thursday dedicated Stuit Hall, the new hub for the University of Iowa Department of Psychology's clinical psychology program.

Stuit Hall is formerly the Old Music Building, at the corner of Gilbert and Jefferson streets in Iowa City.

The 22,000-square-foot building was constructed in 1915 as an isolation ward for the original University Hospital. Its south face was adorned with white wooden balconies, which provided light and fresh air to tuberculosis patients until 1928, when the hospital moved to the west campus. The facility was converted for use by the music department until 1971, when the Voxman Music Building was built. After that, parts of the building became graduate painting studios.

Today, the ground floor houses the Seashore Psychology Clinic, where students, under the supervision of faculty and staff, provide psychological assessments and therapy to the community. The first, second and third floors house lab space for clinical psychology faculty.

The 17-month, $3.7 million renovation was completed in September 2010. Sustainability features include daylighting, a rain garden to capture storm water from the roof, occupancy sensors to control electric lights, new insulation and windows, low-VOC (volatile organic compound) and formaldehyde-free products, energy-efficient mechanicals, and recycling storage and collection centers on every floor.

Stuit Hall won awards for historic preservation, but is also a “green” building - the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)-certified renovation on campus. The building is named in honor of the late Dewey Stuit, a UI psychology professor who served as the dean of liberal arts for three decades, and whose bequest made the renovation possible.