The Mid-Atlantic chapter of the Engineering News-Record recently gave Hill College House its Award of Merit for Renovation/Restoration. The historic building, designed by eminent modern architect Eero Saarinen in 1958, underwent an $80 million renovation in 2016, which included a remodel of the building’s dining hall, installation of a new HVAC system and preservation of historic elements (Almanac August 29, 2017). Prior to its closing for renovations, it was singled out as one of the “most-loathed dorms” in the country by a 2015 New York Times article.

The magazine highlighted the “numerous technical challenges” of this restoration and noted that it “reuses existing materials and features when possible to preserve the original design of noted Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen.” Mills + Schnoering Architects of Princeton, New Jersey, led the design and construction team. Specialists in historic renovation, the firm previously worked on Saarinen’s Gateway Arch in Saint Louis, Missouri.