Discovery Boxes
The Richmond Family Welcome Gallery includes 14 Discovery Boxes, 10’ x 5’ display cases that feature rotating exhibits on more than 130 topics about the past, present, and future of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Student life, University traditions, award winners, campus landmarks and institutions, and many other subjects come to life in these interactive displays’ two complementary exhibition spaces: one side for artifacts and printed materials that have been collected from University partners and alumni, and the other side for a Media Ribbon, a large touch screen that provides access to digital photographs, videos, and interviews with alumni and students.
The Discovery Boxes each have a theme:
Who Are the Illini? — interviews with alumni and students about their experiences at Illinois and the difference the University has made in their lives
What Will I Study? — interviews with alumni and students about how they selected their majors, favorite professors, what alumni did with their degrees, and what students hope to do
Achieve — biographies of award winners in the arts and sciences, as well as astronauts and Alumni Achievement Award recipients
How Do Students Live Here? — short films on the evolution of student housing, from the coal-stoves of the original University building to the high-rise apartments of today
Global Reach — interviews with alumni and students about their study abroad experiences all over the world
In War & Peace — exhibits on the University’s military legacy and support of veterans on campus today
The Thrill of Competition — exhibits on sports and non-sports competitions, including animal sciences judging and computer science hack-a-thons
Student Life — short films on changes in student life, including communications, transportation, room decor, student fashion, course registration, and protests
Music in the Air — videos about music on campus, including the Marching Illini, Black Chorus, Jasmine Field Orchestra, Star Course, and the local music scene over the decades
Illini Traditions — exhibits on current and retired Illinois traditions, including Homecoming, Quad Day, Commencement, Alma Mater, Greek Life, and Altgeld Chimes
Four Discovery Boxes are more general in theme and highlight a potpourri of campus landmarks and institutions, inspiring professors, annual events, student organizations, inventions, and more:
Innovate — current exhibit topics include Morrow Plots, Disability Resources and Educational Services, Japan House, Concrete Canoe, and Carle-Illinois College of Medicine
Imagine — current exhibit topics include Computing, Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, Engineering Open House, Online Learning, and Women in Engineering
Inspire — current exhibit topics include Krannert Art Museum, Engineers Without Borders, Nick Holonyak and the LED, Main Quad, and Boneyard Creek
Interact — current exhibit topics include Interdisciplinary Research, Insect Fear Film Festival, PLATO, The Daily Illini, and Illinois Solar Decathlon