Campus and Buildings

Camups overview

Belmont University occupies a 75-acre campus in southeast Nashville at 16th Avenue South and Wedgewood Avenue. Virtually all traffic skirts the campus and thus allows a quiet, secluded environment. However, the campus is conveniently situated near churches of all faiths, hospitals, restaurants, shopping centers and other universities. Buses of the Metropolitan Transit Authority stop near the campus on their frequent trips to and from the downtown area. Most classes are located in buildings surrounding the campus' main quad with the library and other facilities lying in close proximity. Major structures include:

ACADEMIC/ADMINISTRATIVE/STUDENT LIFE

Alumni House

The last remaining historic clubhouse on the campus interior, next to the Bell Tower, has been designated as the future home for alumni. As Belmont looks to the future and honors the past, alumni will now have a place to reunite with former classmates and professors and reminisce about college days. In addition to housing several staff offices, the Alumni House will be the hub for alumni activity on campus and will be the perfect place for hosting events and displaying historic memorabilia.

Barbara Massey Hall

Barbara Massey Hall, originally known as Founders Hall, provides office space for the Provost as well as faculty and staff for the Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business and the College of Business Administration. In addition, numerous convocation sessions and special events are held in spacious rooms on the building's first floor: the Neely Dining Room and the Black and White Dining Room.

Baskin Center

Opened in 2012, the 71,000 square foot Randall and Sadie Baskin Center serves as the home for Belmont’s College of Law and includes a five-level underground parking garage. A Gold-level LEED certified building, the Baskin Center contains more than a dozen classrooms, a 21st Century trial courtroom, an appellate courtroom, a two-story law library and more than 20 faculty offices.

Beaman Student Life Center

Connected to the Curb Event Center and the Maddox Grand Atrium, the Beaman Student Life Center is the hub of campus activities. The BSLC includes a fitness center with strength training and cardiovascular equipment, an aerobics and dance area for a wide variety of classes, two racquetball courts, a recreational gym, a rock-climbing wall and student locker rooms. In addition to the recreational and wellness facilities, the center houses the administrative offices of Belmont's Dean of Students and the Office of Student Affairs. The facility also features numerous student services including a convenience store, offices and meeting rooms for student organizations, and ample gathering spaces and inviting seating areas for students to study and interact.

Belmont Mansion and Bell Tower

Listed on the national register of historic landmarks, the 155-year-old Belmont Mansion, called Belle Monte in the 1800s, was intended to be a summer home escape for Adelicia and Joseph Acklen, one of the wealthiest families in the South at that time. The Acklens built, furnished and landscaped Belle Monte as one of the most elaborate antebellum homes in the South, and the estate contained an art gallery, conservatories, lavish gardens, aviary, lake and zoo. The Belmont Mansion now serves the university as a social center and is maintained as a historical museum.

Two hundred yards south of the Belmont Mansion stands the historic Bell Tower, which was used as a water tower on the Acklens' original estate and as a signal tower during the Civil War. The current Bell Tower includes a total of 42 bells weighing more than three tons and is one of only five carillons in the state of Tennessee. The Bell Tower is now captured in Belmont University's logo and is honored as the centerpiece of campus.

Bunch Library

The Lila D. Bunch Library is located on the west side of Belmont Boulevard. It houses four floors of resources, seating for approximately 500 students, a circulation lobby, a reference/periodical wing, an information literacy classroom, an instructional technology laboratory, a multimedia presentation hall, an education services center, a music services center, a listening/viewing center, special collection rooms, group study rooms, listening/viewing rooms, an art gallery and casual dining option Bruin Grounds.

Center for Social Entrepreneurship and Service Learning

In 2009, Belmont started a major in Social Entrepreneurship, the first of its kind in the country. The program centers on the emerging business field that tackles social problems and unmet community needs via entrepreneurial principles. Housed on the south side of campus, the interdisciplinary major "seeks to empower and engage students, faculty, staff and community partners though various programming including training, service-learning, assessment and research activities to impact social change through innovative approaches and projects."

Belmont's Service Learning initiative is also housed in the Center on Compton Avenue. The university's vision statement puts service at the heart of a Belmont education and participating in the Nashville community is a vital element of that service. With Nashville being home to a diverse population that includes refugees, immigrants, disadvantaged families and schoolchildren, students' involvement with local service learning helps them better understand the needs challenges and opportunities of working in a variety of settings.

Curb Event Center

Home to the 2008 Town Hall Presidential Debate, Belmont University's Curb Event Center (CEC) is a 90,000-square-foot major sport and entertainment complex. The building offers state-of-the-art facilities for athletics, concerts, speakers, tradeshows, meetings, conferences, dinners, receptions and consumer shows. The Belmont Bruins NCAA Division 1 basketball and volleyball teams play in the Curb Event Center, which is maintained and operated by fully digital, computerized systems and represents state-of-the-art production capabilities. The CEC also features a seven-floor parking garage offering spaces for 800 vehicles.

Adjacent to the Curb Event Center is the elegant Maddox Grand Atrium, which is used for receptions, lectures, dinners and concerts. The expansive anteroom is finished with polished terrazzo flooring, rich cherry-stained wood and moldings, ceramic tiles and elegant art works.

Approximately 3,500 square feet of prime retail space has been set aside on the front section of the Curb Event Center for Belmont students to develop retail or service businesses. Bordering Belmont Boulevard, the three student-run businesses provide an opportunity to learn first-hand about entrepreneurship.

Facilities Management Services Building

The campus’ Facilities Management Services offices are located in a building at the corner of 15^th Avenue South and Delmar Avenue.

Fidelity Hall

Fidelity Hall, which was built in 1905, once served as a residence hall for the Ward Belmont School, a high school and junior college for young women. Alumna Sarah Cannon, who was perhaps best known as her alter ego Minnie Pearl, had a room on the hall's second floor. Fidelity now provides both administrative and academic space for the university. The Department of Philosophy and the School of Religion currently hold classes in Fidelity, and the building is also home to Belmont's Adult Degree Program as well as the Offices of Development, Alumni Relations, Finance and Operations and Human Resources.

Freeman Hall

Built in the late 1800s, Freeman Hall reflects both the rich history and modern innovations for which Belmont University is known nationwide. In addition to serving as Belmont's "front door" and the gathering place for prospective students and parents, the building serves as home to the offices of Admissions, Student Financial Services, the President and several Senior Leaders. Freeman also houses Belmont Central, a one-stop shop for almost anything students may need: forms, transcripts, answers to registration and financial aid questions, etc. Belmont Central plays a key role in Belmont's mission to put students' first by providing individual, unparalleled student service in one centralized location.

Gabhart Student Center

The Gabhart Student Center houses a number of departments that are central to the Student Life experience, including the campus Dining Hall, University Ministries, the Department of Media Studies, Campus Security headquarters, Career Services and Counseling Services. In addition, located on the lower level of Gabhart is the Campus Store, where students can purchase textbooks (new and used), school supplies, Belmont logo clothing and gifts, greeting cards and other related campus items.

Gordon E. Inman Center

Gordon E. Inman, a successful Tennessee business leader, donated $10.5 million to the building that now bears his name on Belmont's campus, representing the largest single donor gift to the university to date. The building is home to several schools in Belmont's College of Health Sciences and Nursing, which serves as a national model for educating practitioners in health and social welfare fields. Through integrated, innovative practices, students learn to work across disciplines, becoming better prepared to serve needs both in their own communities and throughout a constantly changing world.

The Inman Center's state-of-the-art labs are equipped with human patient simulators, digitalized video, bedside computer charting, electronic supply scanning and static mannequins. The labs are designed to reproduce realistic practice settings, including the basic hospital unit, critical care, surgical/operating suite, pediatrics, neonatal nursery, maternity, home care, health assessment and diagnostic labs. All lab spaces are also outfitted with tables and chairs for reflective thinking exercises that allow the students time to review their decisions and actions with the instructor and their classmates.

Hitch Science Building

The Hitch Science Building houses offices, classrooms and labs for most of departments in the School of Sciences including biology, chemistry, computer science, math and physics. The close proximity of class, lab and faculty work space allows students to experience first-hand the connectedness of all sciences.

Honors House

The Honors program at Belmont University was created to provide an enrichment opportunity for students who have potential for superior academic performance and who seek added challenge and breadth in their studies. The program is designed to encourage a range and depth of learning in keeping with the faculty's expectations of excellence for Honors students. In addition to creative curriculum and flexibility in the formation of their degree plans, Honors students also have access to the Honors House (a seminar and lounge facility) to allow time and space for smaller group discussions and tutoring. The program encourages students to explore the major of their dreams, even if they need to create it.

Jack C. Massey Business Center

Encompassing 115,000 square feet, the Jack C. Massey Business Center was completed in 1990, and houses the College of Business Administration and Jack C. Massey Graduate School of Business Administration, class and studio space for the Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business, study lounges, seminar rooms and conference rooms. A state-of-the-art learning center, the building also includes three computer labs and a financial trading room. The building is named for Nashville business legend Jack Massey, who became the first person in the history of the New York Stock Exchange to take three unrelated companies from private to public listings. Business students can also enjoy access to the Career Development Center, the Edward C. Kennedy Center for Business Ethics and the Center for Entrepreneurship during their time in Massey.

Students in Belmont's Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business will spend time in both traditional business classrooms as well as state of the art studio spaces. In the basement of the Massey Business Center lies the Center for Music Business, a 9,000 square foot multi-studio complex comprising classroom teaching laboratories and the Robert E. Mulloy Student Studios. This facility includes a full range of state-of-the-art digital and analogue recording equipment along with an exceptional complement of signal processing equipment and microphones, including the personal microphone collection of legendary producer and former MCA and Capitol label head Jimmy Bowen.

Leu Center for the Visual Arts

This 40,000 square foot facility combines the latest technology with traditional studio spaces, a student gallery and a 118 seat audio/visual classroom for lectures and other multi-media presentations. All studio and design courses take place in large classrooms specifically designed for drawing, painting, printmaking, photography, sculpture and ceramics. The Design Communication courses are taught in two Mac-based graphics labs combining 40 computer workstations with access to color laser printing and ample room for student laptops using a wireless network.

Mail Services

Belmont’s campus mail services and central receiving office is located on the corner Acklen Avenue and 12^th Avenue South.

Massey Performing Arts Center

The Massey Performing Arts Center, known throughout campus as MPAC, provides an exceptional multi-purpose performance setting with the Massey Concert Hall, which seats approximately 1,000 people. The space is used frequently throughout the academic year for concerts, showcases and lectures as well as annual events like Scholarship Day and Opening Convocation. The building's lower levels feature Harton Recital Hall, practice rooms and studios.

McAfee Concert Hall

The newly renovated, 876-seat McAfee Concert Hall, located at 2100 Belmont Blvd., opened in fall 2012. The design concept for the McAfee Concert Hall was developed in consultation with Earl Swensson Associates and Akustiks, the architects and acousticians who designed Nashville’s Schermerhorn Symphony Center. Acousticians conducted extensive, carefully documented scientific studies and developed a plan for the building that expands the volume of space to optimal acoustic proportions for a large orchestra and chorus, creates optimal sound diffusion, and eliminates most ambient noise. Additionally, the 1970 55-rank Aeolian-Skinner Organ was fully refurbished.

McWhorter Hall

The 90,000 square foot McWhorter Hall opened in 2010 and houses the University’s Schools of Pharmacy and Physical Therapy, as well as the Department of Psychological Science. McWhorter Hall was named in honor of Belmont Trustee Emeritus and Chairman of Clayton Associates, Clayton McWhorter, and his brother, the late pharmacist Fred McWhorter. Both men dedicated their careers to the healthcare field, making a difference in the lives of countless individuals and championing healthcare reform.

The building continues the innovation for which Belmont University has become known, containing top-notch laboratories for both student and faculty research. In addition to medical simulation spaces, McWhorter is also home to Belmont’s Health Services clinic and a licensed, state-of-the-art pharmacy, both of which serve students, faculty and staff. The building also includes a four-level underground parking garage.

Sport Science Center

The Department of Sport Science is located in the Sport Science Center, which sits next to the McAfee Concert Hall on the corner of Delmar Avenue and Belmont Blvd. The department is home to the graduate Master of Sport Administration program, as well as a major in Exercise Science and minors in both Athletic Training and Nutrition. Sport Science also provides courses to fulfill the wellness portion of the General Education requirements for all students.

Troutt Theater

Belmont's elegant theater complex opened in 2007 and includes a 350-seat proscenium theater named for former Belmont President Bill Troutt and his wife Carole. Trout Theater provides state-of-the-art lighting and sound, as well as a stage equipped with 35 fly lines with a full package of stage drapes and moveable lighting electrics. Directly behind the stage house lies the Bill and Sharon Sheriff Scene Shop, a production and teaching facility for all of the stage sets, stage properties and stage lighting for all Department of Theatre and Dance productions. Connected to the scene shop is the Black Box Theater, which is used for smaller, intimate productions involving flexible staging, unique audience seating and student-centered design opportunities. The entire facility also doubles as a classroom for acting, movement, diction and dance classes during the day.

Wheeler Humanities Building

The Wheeler Humanities Building provides offices and classrooms for the Schools of Education and Humanities as well as the departments of History, Political Science and Sociology. In addition, the building allows students to access more intensive help through the Writing Center and the Language Learning Center. The Writing Center exists to provide individual instruction, convocation sessions, outreaches to individual classes and instructional materials. The Language Learning Center has 21 computers that are used for class instruction and for language learning conducted outside of class.

Wilson Music Building

The Wilson Music Building offers classroom, rehearsal and office space to the School of Music and its diverse array of performing arts majors. The three-floor structure also houses practice rooms, a piano lab and two music technology labs. Wilson also houses an organ studio containing a small Wicks pipe organ.

RESIDENCE HALLS

Belmont Commons

Belmont Commons, which is located at the south end of campus, provides 30 fully furnished, four-bedroom townhouses each accommodating four residents.

Bruin Hills

Bruin Hills became a part of the Belmont Community in the 1990s and offers 36 two bedroom, one bathroom units to sophomores, juniors and seniors.

Dickens Hall

Dickens Hall opened its doors in August 2012. It is named after the Chairman of the Board of Trustees Marty Dickens and his wife Betty. This building is a new hybrid of apartment style and traditional hall style. Dickens Hall houses 300 residents and has been designated for the rising sophomore class.

Hail Hall

Hail Hall is a historic hall that provides 77 spaces for freshman male and female students in community style residence hall rooms.

Heron Hall

Heron Hall is a historic hall that provides 110 spaces for freshman female students in a suite style arrangement.

The Hillside

The Hillside provides fully furnished, two- and four-bedroom apartments for 410 sophomores, juniors and seniors.

Horrell Hall

Horrell Hall opened in January 2013, and is named after the Horrell family, who have been long-standing supporters of Belmont throughout its history. Horrell Hall is the same apartment style as Dickens Hall and houses 200 upperclassmen residents.

Kennedy Hall

Kennedy Hall, completed in 2003, provides 200 suite style spaces for sophomore students.

Maddox Hall

Connected to Wright by a central lobby, Maddox Hall provides 154 spaces for freshman male students in a suite style arrangement.

Patton Hall and Bear House

In fall 2010, Belmont opened two new, connected residence halls in the center of campus to provide a central living/learning location for incoming freshmen. The south end of the 103,000 square foot structure is named Patton Hall, in honor of longtime Belmont Trustee Carolyn Patton, a 1958 alumna. The north end is named Bear House, reflecting the site of a bear house that was located on Adelicia Acklen’s original property. This residential facility houses male and female residents on separate floors, and the rooms are suite style, double or triple occupancy.

Pembroke Hall

Pembroke Hall is a historic hall and provides 130 spaces for male students in a community style hall.

Potter Hall

Potter Hall opened its doors in the fall of 2008 and is modeled after Kennedy and Thrailkill halls. Rooms may be either double or triple suite style occupancy, and it is part of the North Lawn community.

Thrailkill Hall

Suite-style residence Thrailkill Hall opened its doors in 2006 and provides living space for 322 students as well as 400 parking spaces in the attached garage. The residence hall is named in honor of Belmont's past chairman Larry Thrailkill and his wife, Jan. Thrailkill served on the university's Board of Trustees since 1980 and led the board as chairman during a period of rapid growth for the university.

Wright Hall

Wright Hall provides 290 spaces for freshman female students in a community style hall.

A New Residence Hall is currently under construction

On the east side of 15^th Avenue another new residence hall is currently under construction along with a garage that will connect with the current Thrailkill Garage. This 141,000 square foot project will add 418 residence spaces with a mix of suite-style and apartment-style rooms, and the hall is expected to open in fall 2014.

Wedgewood Academic Center

Belmont University broke ground in May 2012 for the campus’ largest building to date, a 188,000-square-foot academic center situated on the corner of Wedgewood and 15^th Avenues. The building will house most departments from the College of Arts and Sciences as well as the School of Religion. Slated to open in fall 2014 and including a five-level underground parking garage, the facility will connect on three floors to both the Inman Center and McWhorter Hall. In addition, the center will house a 280-seat chapel, a dining venue, 30 classrooms that vary in seating capacity, state-of the-art laboratories and conference room space.

Academic and Dining Services Center

Belmont began construction in spring 2013 on a four-story, 120,000 square foot building on 15^th Avenue between the Baskin Center and Kennedy Hall. The four-story Academic and Dining Services Center will provide space for a new dining services complex as well as additional classrooms and offices. The cafeteria will have a seating capacity that is more than 2.5 times as large as the current seating space in the Gabhart Student Center. Several academic programs—including music business and media studies—have been invited to submit proposals for how occupying the new space could creatively enhance their efforts or provide opportunities for greater innovation within their units. The building will be accompanied by the construction of a 1,000 space underground parking garage, and the facility is expected to open in fall 2015.

Building Listlast updated June 18, 2013