Campus

The main campus of Young Harris College comprises approximately 485 acres, containing 25 major buildings in the core campus. The College owns more than 200 additional acres of wooded mountain land adjoining the main campus. A trail, known as the Old Wagon Trail, runs from the campus to the top of Brasstown Bald, the highest mountain in Georgia.

Academic

The Adams-Galloway House, located on Highway 76, houses faculty offices for the Department of Mathematics. Mathematics classrooms are located close by in the building formerly known as the “Old Brown Store,” which was renovated to include four classrooms, faculty offices, a conference room, and a student work area.

The Alumni House serves as a gathering space for alumni, provides office and work space for meetings and seminars and houses the Baseball offices.

The Beetle Lab houses space for scientific research and beetle rearing that supports the YHC Hemlock Project’s mission to counteract destruction of hemlock trees in north Georgia by the Hemlock Wooly Adegid parasite.

The Campus Gate Art Gallery is a beautifully restored building that hosts exhibitions and installations by professional artists throughout the year as well as the annual student juried art exhibition.

Previously the home of the College’s presidents from 1930 to 1960, the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) engages the academic community with the purpose of providing students with a successful college experience. The CETL hosts an ongoing forum on effective teaching and learning in a higher education environment, including individual guidance through instructional materials and training on advanced educational equipment.

The Charles R. Clegg Fine Arts Building, completed in 1965, is named in honor of a former president of the College. The Clegg Fine Arts Building contains the Hilda D. Glenn Auditorium with a seating capacity of 1,060 and a large stage and orchestra pit for theatre and music presentations. The Clegg Fine Arts Building also houses studios, practice rooms, a choral rehearsal room, and classrooms for the Division of Fine Arts.

Offices for faculty within the Department of Communication Studies are housed in the building between the Center for Writing and Speaking and the Pruitt-Barrett Building.

The Fine Arts Annex, located across the street from the main campus, houses renovated classrooms and media-specific studio space, including a painting studio, a drawing studio and a 3-D sculpture studio. The facility also houses faculty offices for the Department of Art, which include individual studio spaces.

The Goolsby Center for Humanities and Social and Behavioral Sciences, completed in 1993, is named in honor of G. Milton, ‘16, and Ophelia Roberts Goolsby, ‘16. This 40,000-square-foot building provides 12 classrooms and 20 offices for humanities and social and behavioral sciences faculty. In addition, the Goolsby Center contains a conference room, the 158-seat Wilson Lecture Hall, and Dobbs Theatre, a “black-box” style performance venue.

The Maxwell Center for Mathematics and Sciences, completed 1979, is named for Alva Maxwell, ‘14, and Edna Stephens Maxwell, who gave many years of devoted service to the College. Mr. Maxwell served on the College’s Board of Trustees for 63 years, and, for 16 of those years, he served as chairman. The history of the family of Mrs. Maxwell is intertwined with that of Young Harris College. Her grandmother, Mrs. Nancy Louise Haynes Stephens Sanderson Robertson, gave the original parcel of land upon which the College was established. This multipurpose classroom building houses the physical and biological sciences, mathematics and the O. Wayne Rollins Planetarium.

The Observatory, located on the campus of Brasstown Valley Resort just a few minutes from campus, benefits from its high elevation and access to the wonderful dark skies of northern Georgia. In addition to the main telescope housed in a 15-foot dome, the facility also contains piers which mount two 8-inch scopes. The observatory has a number of other telescopes that can be used on the site as well. The main telescope is a Meade 16-inch reflector with Schmidt Cassegrain optical design. The observatory is located at an elevation of over 2000 feet on the flanks of Brasstown Bald, the tallest peak in Georgia. The high elevation, combined with the relatively low light pollution in the area, make for excellent viewing conditions on clear star-filled nights.

The O. Wayne Rollins Planetarium, located in the Maxwell Center for Mathematics and Science, was made possible through the philanthropy of Wayne and Grace Rollins. With seating for 109 people under a 40-foot dome, the planetarium features a GOTO “Chronos” star projector and a Sky-Skan definiti fulldome digital projection system.

The Outdoor Leadership Center serves as the home base for outdoor leadership classes and programs. The center includes three faculty offices, a large classroom space, common area, full-size kitchen, reading and computer work stations, and land and water equipment storage. A large green space in front of the facility and a wooded area behind the building are readily used as outdoor classrooms.

Administration

The Office of Alumni Services is the office space for members of the alumni services staff.

The Pruitt-Barrett Building was constructed in 1949 and was renovated and expanded in 1986 and 2000. The building is named in honor of two benefactors of the College, J. C. Pruitt and Guy Barrett. The Pruitt-Barrett Building houses the offices of Academic Affairs, Business, Communications, Finance & Administration, Human Resources, Information Technology and Planning & Research.

Sharp Hall, built in 1912, is the second oldest building on campus. Last renovated in 2009, Sharp Hall houses the offices of the President, Advancement, Alumni Services, and the Campus Bookstore.

Athletics

The Department of Athletics relocated to the acquired motel space across the street from campus in 2012. This space houses almost all YHC coaches and the athletic administration. Another new addition to this property is a dedicated strength and conditioning space for YHC athletics teams located in the former Mary Ann’s restaurant in front of the motel. The area boasts 2,000 square feet of equipment tailored to the effective training and preparation of student-athletes. Additional space for training and locker rooms is available in the building across from the Recreation and Fitness Center.

The Berry Tennis Center is named in honor of Irene Hackney Berry and was given to the College as a part of the estate of Irene Hackney Berry. This facility serves as the home to a pro shop, locker rooms and offices for the tennis, golf, and cross country programs.

The Cross Country Trail utilizes the immediate campus and surrounding area and is one of the most scenic and challenging in the state. Approximately two miles in length with a compacted gravel surface, the course incorporates a variety of challenges for runners, traversing mountainous and flat terrain, crossing bridges and short stretches of pavement. The course includes switch-back portions and connecting loops making it possible to easily add to the length of a meet.

The Soccer and Lacrosse Field is used for men’s and women’s intercollegiate soccer and lacrosse. The field features a state-of-the-art Daktronics scoreboard and AstroTurf® outlined in “YHC purple” that features the mountain lion logo at center field with the NCAA logo displayed on either side.

The YHC Softball Field is used for intercollegiate women’s softball.

The 57,000-square foot Harp Recreation and Commencement Center opened in 2010. This state-of-the-art facility features a first-class, fully equipped weight room and fitness center, an impressive 37-foot-high rock climbing wall, an elevated indoor jogging track surrounding the facility and a state-of-the-art 1,100-purple-seat, NCAA-regulation arena that serves as the home of Mountain Lions basketball and volleyball. The center also boasts multipurpose classrooms for yoga, dance and aerobics, office space and locker rooms for the athletic department, and wide expanses of windows to enjoy the surrounding mountain-landscape views. YHC was awarded LEED Certification for the Recreation and Fitness Center by the Green Building Certification Institute.

The Bob and Gayle Nichols Tennis Complex, built in 2010, is located on Highway 76 and serves as the home competition facility for men’s and women’s tennis with 12 lighted courts.

The Zell B. Miller Field, named in honor of former Georgia Governor and U.S. Senator Zell B. Miller, ‘51, is used for intercollegiate baseball.

The Frances Wood Wilson Practice Field and Intramural Fields are located near the Nichols Tennis Complex and are utilized by intercollegiate teams and student-led intramural teams.

The YHC Putting Green Facility, generously donated by Mary Broadrick and John Moffitt, and the Mickey and Teresa Dunn Short-Game Golf Facility provide the men’s and women’s golf teams with a first-class facility that will assist the student-athletes in reaching their goals.

Residence Life

Young Harris College has many styles of residence halls to meet a variety of student needs and preferences. There is a mix of standard double occupancy rooms, suite-style rooms and apartments. Each building has wireless internet access, cable hook-ups and a laundry room that allows students to check online to see machine availability and receive a text message when their laundry is finished.

The Appleby Complex, named for alumnus and trustee Scott B. Appleby (Class of 1895), was first occupied in 1961 and is composed of two units: Center and West. Both sections are arranged in two-room suites with a connecting bath. Each division has a common room. Outside Center is a large porch area ideal for social gathering or outdoor study space. Appleby is located near the heart of campus.
Enotah Hall, completed in 2010, is a state-of-the-art, LEED Silver-Certified facility. The hall’s residential suites are each composed of two double-occupancy rooms with two baths, a living room and a kitchenette. The building contains study rooms and four soundproof Wenger music practice rooms. Located behind Enotah Hall is an amphitheater that serves as a versatile space used for plays, lectures, concerts and religious life gatherings. It is steps away from the Recreation & Fitness Center.
Hillgrove Hall was completed in the fall of 2002. Each room has its own bathroom. Also within the hall is a TV lounge and a study room. Hillgrove is the closest residence hall to the Rollins Campus Center and the front doors open into the middle of the lawn in the middle of campus.
Manget Hall, completed in 1956 with funds given to the College by Mr. Scott B. Appleby (Class of 1895), honors the memory of Mr. John Manget. Each unit has three or four two-person rooms with two baths and a living room. The hall is steps away from the Recreation & Fitness Center. Offices for the YHC Police Department are also in Manget.
Rollins Hall, completed in 1986, honors the late O. Wayne Rollins, who served as a loyal trustee of the College for 21 years prior to his death in 1991. Each unit has four two-person rooms, two baths and a large living room. Rollins also has a common room for the building with a full kitchen, table and flat screen TV. There is grilling area outside the building with nearby seating.
The Towers, which opened in Fall 2013, is a unique housing community for first-year students. Centered near the heart of campus, this LEED-certified facility is made up of three separate buildings connected through a shared central building. The Towers are configured in “pods,” or small communities consisting of students living in different sizes and styles of rooms surrounding a common area with couches and gathering spaces. There is green space in the front and back of the building with tables and chairs.
The Village opened in 2011 and is a LEED-certified apartment-style housing community for upperclassmen. Each apartment includes four private bedrooms, a living area, kitchen, and washer and dryer. The “village” atmosphere is facilitated by expansive porches, designated areas for grilling and abundant green space surrounding the apartments.

Student Life

The $41 million, 121,000-square-foot Rollins Campus Center houses four distinct areas: a 60,000-square-foot, multi-purpose student center; the 40,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art Zell and Shirley Miller Library; Grace Rollins Dining Hall; and a 350-seat, versatile Charles Suber Banquet Hall. Some highlights include space for student organizations in the Mary Warren Student Organization Loft, a game room and multimedia theatre with stadium seating for 25, a Chick-fil-A Express, and a Starbucks coffee shop. The facility houses the Student Success Center and the offices of Admissions, Career & Professional Development, Disability Services, Financial Aid, Registrar, Student Counseling, Student Development, and Religious Life. The facility was recently awarded LEED Gold certification-the first facility on the YHC campus to receive this status.

The Susan B. Harris Chapel, a memorial to the wife of Young L. G. Harris, was built in 1892. Last updated in 2009, the Chapel is used as a general assembly hall for vespers, concerts and lectures. The Chapel is the oldest building on campus and is more closely associated with the traditions of the College than any of the other buildings.

Miscellaneous

Sharp Memorial United Methodist Church, constructed in 1949, is a memorial to a former president of the College, Joseph Astor Sharp.