Marina Karasik

COMM 331
4/2/17
A Brick in UMD History: The Mitchell Building

COLLEGE PARK, Md. The Mitchell Building, formerly known solely as the Art/
Sociology building has been the home of both the art and sociology departments since its
construction in the 1970s. The building is home to the UMD Art Gallery as well as the Art
Library.

History

A photo of the Mitchell Building (then known as the Art- Sociology Building) taken from the 1976 school yearbook.
The Art- Sociology building was built in 1975, and began to host classes in 1976. Upon the
completion of the building, the university of Maryland hosted a large, week long celebration,
including dances choreographed by students from the dance department.

The building is located across from the Benjamin Building, and next to Tawes Hall. The area
surrounding the building used to be known as the gulch according to Daniel Hayes, of the
University of Maryland School Department of Facilities Planning

That side of campus used to be the recreation fields for the womens field house, which is now
Preinkert. he added. It used to be a set of 10- tennis courts where Architecture is.

He adds that the Mitchell Building was the last building built on that parcel. The first would have
been Tawes. Benjamin was second. Then, Art/ Soc was third in the 1970s. It was filling in
property that used to be farmland. Campus drive used to go diagonally through that whole
property.

Hayes says the architectural style of the building can be described as Brutalism.

The building is an example of contemporary architecture. Almost brutalist in its style. And
brutalism is something that you would see... for example the Boston City Hall, which is made out
of concrete, is one of the primary examples of that style.

Hayes adds that the architecture of the Mitchell building contrasts from the neighboring
buildings. As opposed to the Architecture Building across the street, which is more the style
that is similar to Sea Ranch, by Moore he explains.
An architectural painting done of the building done by Warren G. Sargent & Associates, found in the UMD archives.

Renaming

In October of 2015, the Board of Regents unanimously voted to dedicate the Art- Sociology
Building to late Congressman Parren Mitchell.

In 1950, the baltimore City Court ordered the University of Maryland to accept Mitchell into its
sociology program. Despite the hostile environment, Mitchell graduated two years later, in 1952
with honors and an M.A. in sociology. He was the first African- American graduate student at the
university.

In 1970, Mitchell became the first black congressperson from the state of Maryland. He was
also the first African- American congressman from below the Mason Dixon Line since 1898. He
represented Marylands Seventh Congressional District and was one of the 13 founding
member of the Black Caucus.

The renaming of the Mitchell building was cause for outcry over the renaming of what used to
be known as Byrd Stadium.
During the dedication ceremony at the Mitchell building on Dec. 3, 2015, distressed student
Colin Byrd (who has no relation to Byrd Stadium) interrupted President Wallace D. Lohs speech
at the commemoration.

Byrd criticised Loh for not acting fast enough on the issue of the Byrd Stadium renaming, calling
it B.S.

Loh responded by thanking Byrd for speaking out on the issue, but did not extend the
conversation further.

To this day, the UMD sociology department hosts the Annual Parren Mitchell Symposium in his
honor.

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