Filling in the Blanks about Blank Honors Center
The History, Staff, and Students of the Building the Honors Program Calls Home
By LeeAnn Mills and Niya Shaul
Sitting in between Burge Residence Hall and the Pomerantz Center on the T. Anne Cleary Walkway is a sleek, modern building with a
minimalist glass front and multiple study tables on an outdoor patio — the Blank Honors Center. This building is one that many Hawkeyes pass on their way through campus, yet not everyone, including many University of Iowa Honors Program Students, are aware of its detail and nuance.
The honors program was earlier housed in the Shambaugh House, currently the home of the International Writing Program, throughout the 1980s. Then, in 2001, construction of the Blank Honors Center was announced.
Throughout its two years of construction, the honors director at the time as well as honors students were closely engaged in creating the vision for Blank. This resulted in several intentional design features when it was finished in 2003. For example, there is an outdoor study deck inspired by a feature of the Shambaugh House, which is a special-access study space for honors students.
The building is named after Myron and Jacqueline Blank who made the main donation to establish the Blank Honors Center. The couple was passionate in helping gifted students and those within the College of Education here at the UI. The Blank Honors Center is a tangible representation of their legacy today.
Throughout the school year, Blank is always bustling with different activities for honors students and houses the offices of many staff members, including the honors program’s director and staff on the fourth floor. Students can meet with these professional staff and peer mentors as a support system as they navigate their journey through the honors program.
From Coffee Mondays to Late Night Study & Snacks, there are always fun and engaging honors program activities offered at Blank for students to attend. There are a selection of events offered every month as an engaging way for new and returning honors students alike to meet and build friendships with those in the honors community.
“When I think of Blank Honors Center, I just think of all the events I got to go to, and that meant getting to meet new friends and getting to do fun arts and crafts to wind down,” first-year journalism student Hannah Childers expressed. “My favorite was probably when we made bags for the food pantry.”
Blank is also at honors students’ disposal when they need a quiet study spot. Since certain spots, such as the aforementioned outdoor porch, are available only to honors students through their Iowa One Card, Blank is a perfect space to study when common locations such as the Main Library or the Iowa Memorial Union become crowded. These spaces provide additional areas for honors students to go and focus.
Maddie Lund, a first-year student from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, observed that Blank “is a study space with lots of natural light,
comfortable seating, and is relatively quiet.”
Her favorite spot is the open-concept third-floor space with tables overlooking campus and a few computers and printers.
“It feels like a good place I can go to to get things done,” she said.
Michael Roelofs, a first-year honors student, said the library on the fourth floor of the honors center is very comfortable and “promote[s] a good study environment. “I feel very productive while I’m in that room,” he said.
Among these study spaces, there are also multiple comfortable seats and tables on the first floor. These spaces provide a great environment for studying or meeting friends and are useful for whenever a calm retreat or friendly face is needed.
As a future honors student preparing to come to campus — whether you are wondering about study spaces close to the residence halls, who you can go to talk to about your journey within honors, or are looking for fun ways to make friends and build community — Blank Honors Center, this hidden gem on campus, will always have its doors open.
