Over the years, Baldwin Wallace University has undergone many permanent and temporary changes experienced by alumni and students.
Claudine Grunenwald Kirschner, director of first year & second-year experience and 1993 BW alumna, noted many changes within her time at BW, such as how Baldwin Wallace University was known as Baldwin Wallace College during her time as a student.
“One of the biggest changes that I can think of is that we didn’t have school by semesters we had school by quarters. We were one of the last schools in the state that were still on quarters,” Grunenwald Kirschner said.
From that day on, the academic calendar at BW observes semesters rather than quarters.
“There was [First Year Experience] when I was a student, but it wasn’t required and then there have been different iterations over the years,” Grunenwald Kirschner said.
FYE is a one credit class now required by freshman and transfer students. This course plays a vital role in the freshman experience at BW.
Jacque Eierdam, who graduated from BW in Spring 2024, said there were a lot of temporary changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“There wasn’t an involvement fair, and there was not really a Week of Welcome,” Eierdam said.
During the pandemic, students were forced to go to school remotely and navigate unfamiliar terrain, Eiredam said, including transitioning from class being in-person to virtual.
“We were masked for a good part of the time and that first semester back you had to meet in person once a week,” Grunenwald Kirschner said, “but you had to be six feet apart. So, you generally only met with half your class.”
However, during the pandemic, Baldwin Wallace gave its students longer breaks, Eirdam said.
“Due to the pandemic and trying to keep students healthy, Baldwin Wallace had winter break from Thanksgiving until January,” Eierdam said.
Morgan Knox, who graduated from BW in 2022 said there used to be a grocery store in the basement of the Union called “Buzzy’s”.
“We could use our swipes at Buzzy’s, so we would go there on the weekends and use our extra swipes on groceries,” Knox said.
Baldwin Wallace now has “Stinger’s Market” located across campus in the Center for Innovation and Growth, where students can also use swipes to purchase grocery items.
Knox said there were cartons of fruit, household products and medicine sold at Buzzy’s, whereas Stinger’s Market is known for selling food and beverages, lacking essential household products and medicine.
In addition to those changes, there are many buildings on Baldwin Wallace’s campus that have undergone changes and programs that have required new buildings. Knox, who majored in communication studies, said the communications department is now in Loomis when it used to be in Kleist.
Eierdam said The Austin E. Knowlton Center was built during her sophomore year. Regarding The Knowlton Center Eierdam said, “I have been there a lot since then.”
Changes are constantly occurring at Baldwin Wallace, whether they are permanent or temporary.
“There are things that always evolve, of course. Whether you were a student in the glorious 90s or in the 2000s, things change,” Grunenwald Kirschner said.
