The Ivy Gates of MCLA: A Story of Tradition
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From its founding as the North Adams Normal School, a college for educators to be trained and taught to educate children, incoming students were greeted by iron gates at what is now known as Murdock Hall. There were two entrances on the east side of the building where iron gates protected the two doors. In 1992 the North Adams State College Centennial Planning Committee decided to reposition and restore the gates. The grand opening of the gates took place in the fall of 1997, the same year the college changed its name to the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA)
Students pass through the gates on their first day of freshman year as students at MCLA, marking the beginning of their journey for the next four years. After this, the tradition is that a student should not pass through the gates until are graduating. Rumor has it that walking between the gates before then means they will not graduate – at least on time. As one student recounted, “I know someone who walked through them accidentally. He graduated a semester late. I like to think it is because it was not intentional . . . otherwise he would never get out of here!”
Every year on the day before Commencement, graduates convene for Baccalaureate, a moment to give thanks and reflect on their time at MCLA. During the ceremony, students read historic “Ivy Poems” written by previous graduating classes, then debut their own. At the close, they receive a spring of ivy to offer to those professors, advisors, and mentors who have positively impacted their time at MCLA. Representing learning and growth, these ivy leaves call back to the time when Murdock Hall was adorned with vines, the results of ivy springs planted each year upon graduation. Like ivy reaching to the sun, our students forge their own paths towards dreams and goals that shine brightly ahead. Though the vines no longer grow on Murdock Hall, the leaves exchanged at the Baccalaureate mark a moment where students pause and recognize that their accomplishments are often rooted in the support of others.
At graduation, students walk through the gates one last time to symbolize the end of their journey as a student at MCLA and take a moment to pause and look back on the significance of education and the role that the university played in shaping them as individuals.
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Source: Courtesy of MCLA Freel Library
Ivy Poem Class of 2013 (excerpt) by Shauna Dacus
“We walked through Church Street gates as children, unaware of our futures and unburdened with our pasts. Excited to start anew, we made connections that lasted, friendships that flourished, and learned to love learning.” | Source: Courtesy of Freel Library
Sketch of the Gates
Iron gates were moved from Murdock Hall to allow better visibility. The design of the gates was drawn up by Gary O’Niel. O’Niel came up with the four gates welded into two to allow for a larger opening. The estimated cost was $2,600. | Source: Courtesy of Freel Library
Gates Opening Ceremony
The new gates were a symbol of new beginnings for Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. The children of Magic Seasons Daycare were the first people to pass through the new gates. President Aceto thought there was no better way to symbolize tomorrow than the children. | Source: Courtesy of the MCLA Freel Library
Ivy Poem Class of 1928 by Margaret Mullen
Source: Courtesy of Freel Library
Ivy Tradition and Poem (excerpts). 1911 Ivy Poem by Anna D. Donovan
"The ivy which we plant today, was cut from a vine, in the fall of 1909 and, being given careful treatment, thrived…” “Each year may we return to this home and view what to others is a symbol of our class, but to us is a symbol of our growth, our love, and all that our school holds dear to us.” | Source: Courtesy of Freel Library