Spelman College has officially reopened Morehouse-James Hall this fall after an 18-month renovation that brought modern amenities to the 124-year-old residence hall while preserving its historic character.
The dormitory, built in 1901 and last renovated in 1979, now features central air conditioning, an elevator, new electrical and plumbing systems, and enhanced security measures. The 77-bed facility returned to service for the fall 2025 semester after being closed for the entire 2024-25 academic year.
The renovation is part of a broader $160 million infrastructure investment at Spelman over the past five years, with $32 million dedicated to air conditioning two historic buildings: Morehouse-James and Abbey Aldrich Rockefeller halls.
“We’ve been able to show the well-being of our students and the care for our students, and now we’re able to do that in a very physical way,” said Dr. Darryl Holloman, Spelman’s vice president of student affairs, during a tour of the facility.
The renovation comes amid what Holloman described as a “resurgence of interest in HBCUs,” with Black students increasingly choosing historically Black colleges over predominantly white institutions.
Photo by Noah Washington/The Atlanta Voice
“When we want to have the same level of amenities that all of our colleagues have at their other institutions,” Holloman said. “When they come, we want to make sure that they have all of the things that they would have if they had gone to another school.”
The project restored the building to its original 1901 layout after decades of modifications. In the 1970s, bathrooms were added in the middle of floors, disrupting the building’s circulation pattern. The renovation moved those facilities and reopened access to a second-floor porch overlooking the historic Spelman Oval.
Arthur Frazier, Spelman’s director of facilities management and services, oversaw the 18-month renovation project that transformed the building’s infrastructure from top to bottom.
“There are things that a lot of us take for granted, particularly on the maintenance side. It makes our lives a little easier than maintaining systems that are antiquated,” Frazier said.
“I think HBCUs get a lot of criticism about not paying attention to the infrastructure, not listening to the infrastructure, and this is a living example that HBCUs invest in their infrastructure similarly to other institutions,” Holloman said.
The renovation also added a ground-floor entrance, microfridge units in each room, and a community kitchen and student lounge area.
For current senior Morgan Jackson, who lived in Morehouse-James from fall 2022 to spring 2023, the transformation was striking.
“It’s very open, and it invites community, and Spelman is all about sisterhood,” said Jackson, whose traditional college experience became a “full circle moment” when she discovered her mother also lived in the building decades earlier.
Her mother, Joslyn Jackson, Class of 1996, who lived in Morehouse-James during the 1993-94 academic year, brought mixed emotions to seeing the transformed space ahead of her 30th reunion in May.
“It’s a little bit emotional,” the elder Jackson said. “I’m excited. I’m happy. I think this is amazing. I think that the college deserved it, the students deserve this upgrade.”
Morgan Jackson said the upgrades represent both legacy and progress at the historically Black women’s college.
“Just appreciate the legacy and the progress that Spelman has made. In the past, we didn’t have AC. We didn’t have all of these things, but now we do all because of the efforts of alumni like my mom and of all the other alumni networks,” she said.
The renovation included completely new electrical, plumbing, and mechanical systems throughout the four-story building. Frazier said the air conditioning and elevator are the most significant new features for students, especially given Atlanta’s climate.
Holloman emphasized that the infrastructure investment supports the college’s broader mission of student well-being, including counseling services and support for neurodivergent students.
“We want to make sure for our students today, regardless of their institutional type, that we’re leaning into a sense of their well-being,” Holloman said.
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