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| Ackerman Union - detail |
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| Kerckhoff Hall |
Ackerman Union
William Coit Ackerman served as executive director of the Associated
Students from 1933 until 1967. (The position was initially known
as graduate manager.) Ackerman's association with UCLA spanned 47
years. He was a student (he started at the Southern Branch in 1920),
faculty member (physical education), men's tennis coach (his team
won the Pacific Coast Conference in 1932 and the NCAA championship
in 1950) and ASUCLA official.
The student union building, which opened in 1961, was renamed Ackerman
Union upon "Mr. A's" retirement in 1967.
Arthur Ashe Student Health & Wellness
Center
Arthur Ashe was a UCLA alumnus known for his student activism as
well as his athletic success. He became one of the first African
Americans to excel in tennis, winning at Wimbledon and elsewhere.
Ashe was also a humanitarian and accomplished statesman.
Prior to 1997, Student Health was housed in the UCLA Medical Center.
The Arthur Ashe Student Health & Wellness Center is located
on Bruin Plaza near Ackerman Union and other student services. In
addition to its improved accessibility, the Ashe Center offered
an opportunity to focus on "wellness" as well as prevention
and treatment of illness.
Kerckhoff Hall
After success in the lumber business, William G. Kerckhoff was involved
in the development of hydroelectric power in 1891, bringing electricity
to southern and central California. Kerckhoff and his associates
formed the Southern California Gas Corporation in 1910. On his deathbed,
Kerckhoff told his wife to "build the building Dr. Moore wants."
Louise Kerckhoff spent $815,000 to build and furnish the original
student union.
On the fourth floor of Kerckhoff Hall is a meeting room once used
by the UC Regents and now used by the Undergraduate Students Association
Council. A formal portrait of William Kerckhoff hangs on one wall.
On the window side of the room, stained glass images of a redwood
tree and a dam are a reference to Kerckhoff's life.
Kerckhoff Hall (shown above) is the only building on campus built
in the Collegiate Gothic style. Its pointed arches are in contrast
with the rounded Roman arches of the original campus buildings.
Lu Valle Commons
James Ellis Lu Valle was a chemistry and physics scholar who earned
his bachelor's and master's degrees at UCLA. He was also a track
champion who won a bronze medal in the '36 Olympics in Berlin. As
a graduate student, he became the first president of the Associated
Graduate Students, a club that anticipated formal graduate student
government.
After earning his Ph.D. at CalTech, Lu Valle joined the staff of
the Eastman Kodak research labs, the first African American to do
so. Later, he became director of Stanford University's Chemistry
Department Laboratories.
Lu Valle Commons was dedicated in 1985. Before his death, Lu Valle
used to visit the Commons and talk to students there. When introduced,
he typically said "Just call me Jimmy." The coffee house
there is named "Jimmy's" in tribute to his friendly informality.
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