Many chapters in the book of history have been figuratively written on the walls of Wilson Hall, the oldest dormitory on Northeastern State University’s campus.

But what’s behind the walls is another story.

Wilson Hall bears the name of Florence Wilson, principal of the Cherokee Female Seminary when it was built in 1936. And the students who live there while they pursue their degrees have a special attachment to the venerable building they call home.

They know it needs major work. They also know the money’s not readily available to fix it.

Melissa Miller would rather live in Wilson Hall than anywhere else. She just has a problem with the water and a radiator she can’t turn off.

“When it rains, it floods,” Miller said. “And I don’t like the radiator, either. It feels unsafe.”

Mildew, open electrical wiring boxes, rusty pipes, threadbare insulation, and crumbling foundations from water damage can be spotted in various areas of the dormitory, especially in the basement. But NSU officials estimate a $10 million price tag for repairs, and they aren’t optimistic they can find that kind of money in today’s economic climate.

The students want to help. That’s one reason Alicia Slader, NSU Housing Advisory Committee president, hosted the “Wilson First Rally” Tuesday afternoon. She and other students presented a slide show and offered tours of the dormitory to spark community awareness.

“This is a nationally recognized building,” she said. “We should be taking an active part in helping clean the black mold and solving [the building’s] other problems. [Some] of the bathrooms in the hall are out of order. And some of the toilets leak onto the floors. We just want to gain some momentum, support and money to fix the dorms.”

NSU officials will take any help they can get, but they know a project of this magnitude can’t coalesce overnight.

“Wilson Hall is a building from the 1930s that hasn’t had any major renovations,” said Kim Cherry, vice president for administration. “In the ‘30s, there weren’t such things as building codes. [Wilson] is in extreme need of major repairs. We had talked about renovating the restrooms last summer, but there were too many things that had to be done. The facility would have had to be closed for at least a semester.”

As far as residents are concerned, the major concerns are air quality, frequent flooding that causes water damage, and standing water in areas like the basement laundry room. NSU officials said that while mold is indeed present, the air quality is tested at least once a semester, and affected areas have been quarantined.

Major repairs would have to be implemented in costly increments. And for buildings as old as Wilson Hall, there’s a caveat: Once a certain percentage of overall refurbishment is reached, the entire building must be brought up to code.

“We are looking at probably in excess of $1 million to renovate the bathrooms, $1 million for the roof, half a million to do masonry repair. Those are three things I consider critical,” said Cherry. “Our thought always is, stabilize the envelope of the building – the roof, masonry and exterior, to keep water out – before we do anything else.”

Members of NSU’s Housing Advisory Committee have been discussing what they and others could do to help. Panel members plan to meet every other Tuesday evening to clean the basement and discuss options.

“[Auxiliary Services Director] Randy Shelton said he had supplies the committee and volunteers can use to start cleaning the basement,” Slader said.

Tuesday evening, David Rennie, Wilson Hall residence adviser, guided a group to the basement first. He pointed out a door to a room that stays locked, because it’s not suitable for habitation. Next to that door is the basement lounge, where mold is creeping in at the base of the wall and the carpet. Open ceiling tiles display a cautionary warning that asbestos may be present in the pipes above.

Rennie also guided the students to what he called “Hellmouth,” an area across from Room 21.

“This is where the heat from a faulty steam pipe in the radiator system got very hot and cracked the foundation,” he said. “They fixed this, but another ‘hellmouth’ is being born right next to it.”

This, according to maintenance personnel, is a condensate return line that, despite numerous patching projects, has continued to deteriorate. At this point, a major renovation is needed to fix the damage.

Rennie said the worst parts of the basement – some of which constituted the main kitchen and dining area during the dorm’s earlier days – have been closed to students. But residents have to live with other issues.

“This is a permanent bucket that catches the water from this leaking pipe above here,” he said, pointing up.

NSU officials understand their concern. Cherry, in fact, called the deterioration of Wilson Hall “heart-breaking,” but she also pointed to financial limitations that extend well beyond the current economy.

She explained that dormitories fall under auxiliary services, which is an entity separate from campus facilities that house classes.

“State appropriations and tuition cannot be used to renovate housing facilities. That money has to come from housing rents,” Cherry said. “To completely renovate Wilson would cost in excess of $10 million, so we’re talking about a revenue bond.”

A revenue bond is essentially a loan that would have to be repaid through projected “profits” – in this case, through housing fees paid by students.

“One of the things we’re looking at is how rent would have to go up to cover a $10 million bond issue,” Cherry said. “We feel pretty strongly that students wouldn’t be able to afford the rent that would be required.”

Tim Foutch, associate vice president for administration, oversees auxiliary services at NSU, which are maintained separately from other facilities. He agrees with Cherry that renovation costs are prohibitive now, but he also understands the students’ feelings, and he worries they may not understand the obstacles officials face.

“There’s an emotional factor here, and we don’t want [this group of students] to feel as though we aren’t concerned; nothing could be further from the truth,” he said. “We’ve been looking at this issue for a number of years, and what we run into every single time is that it will take a tremendous amount of money and coordination to get this building where it needs to be.”

Cherry said there’s a waiting list of students trying to get into Wilson Hall.

“”We’ve discussed closing the facility, but this dorm has a longer waiting list and a more vocal student body than any other [dorm], and they just don’t want to close it,” Cherry said.

And that closure would be lengthy.

“We’d have to shut it down 18 month to two years to bring it back to optimum function,” Foutch said.

Cherry said a student currently pays $1,016 per semester for a semi-private room, and $1,204 for a private room in Wilson Hall.

“If I had to guess what it would take to fund a debt service [on a revenue bond], I’d say it would probably be 2-1/2 times [the current housing rate there],” she said.

Foutch said officials are always looking for fundraising opportunities – the only other alternatives to revenue bonds.

“But [dormitories] aren’t at the top of donors’ lists,” he said. “People rarely invest in those. They’re normally interested in a more high-profile facility.”

A football stadium might be a good example.

Slader, Rennie and the other students are aware the university doesn’t have the money to implement all the needed repairs. But they aren’t giving up.

“Our committee is trying to be proactive,” Slader said.

Rennie wants to make Wilson more habitable for the students planning to attend NSU in the future.

“Just for asbestos cleaning, it will cost [at least] $79,000. The school can’t afford to fix it. Half the state’s funding goes to OU and OSU,” he said.

Slader has an eye on the future.

“I have five little brothers who want to go here and I want it better for them,” she said.

She said coin collections that display “Save Wilson Hall” will be distributed around campus to help encourage donations.

“Right now, they will be on campus,” she said. “But I hope we can get it more widespread into the community.”