Main Entry from Harrison Street crossing walking southwest. Rendering by Krueck Sexton Partners. CADA Welcome Suite – Main Entry to Henry Hall. Rendering by Krueck Sexton Partners. Listen to story summary

The University of Illinois Chicago has begun a major renovation of Jefferson and Henry halls to upgrade and optimize interior spaces while preserving the historic brutalist character of the Walter Netsch-designed buildings.

The modernization project, designed by Chicago-based Krueck Sexton Partners, will expand classroom and studio space for students in the College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts’ School of Theatre and Music and the growing computer science and design major. It also will add office spaces for the college. 

The renovation marks the first comprehensive update to the buildings since their 1965 opening. It will increase classroom and programming space while improving the building systems for energy efficiency and sustainability, achieving a minimum LEED Silver certification.  

The modernization, approved by the University of Illinois Board of Trustees in March 2025, is supported by private philanthropy and institutional support. A recent gift from UIC College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts alum L. Walter Stearns will fund the project’s first named space, a theatre studio. 

Main entry from campus walking north. Rendering by Krueck Sexton Partners. Landscape Plan. Rendering by Krueck Sexton Partners.

“The inspiring commitments of support reflect our ongoing investment in our faculty, students and arts facilities across campus,” said Rebecca Rugg, dean of the College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts. “These vital improvements will allow us to better serve our students and prepare our classroom spaces to support boundary-pushing art for years to come. We are grateful to the many donors and the university for their belief in the essential role of the arts on UIC’s campus and beyond.”

As part of the redesign, a freestanding brick wall along Harrison Street will be removed and replaced with perennial plantings. Entrances to Jefferson and Henry halls will be reoriented between the two buildings, establishing a central access point for students, faculty and visitors approaching from both the north and south ends of campus, thus strengthening connections across campus.

Beyond the building improvements, the project has fostered meaningful dialogue among faculty, students and the broader community about the architectural legacy of Walter Netsch and the stewardship of UIC’s internationally recognized brutalist campus. That engagement was reflected in “Concrete Culture,” a public symposium held in fall 2025 at Chicago Architecture Center and UIC and attended by the renovation’s architects, with support from the Alphawood Foundation. 

Main entry to Henry Hall. Rendering by Krueck Sexton Partners. Main entry from Harrison Street walking south. Rendering by Krueck Sexton Partners.

The project is part of a broader series of investments in the College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts. Since Rugg’s tenure began in 2019, donors have established more than 25 scholarships, fellowships, professorships and academic support funds, benefiting hundreds of students, advancing faculty research and strengthening the college’s academic programs.