YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Something happened at Youngstown State University this week that’s only happened twice before.
The Rock, a boulder where students and student groups for decades have painted messages and promoted events, was moved. The latest relocation, which required a crane, is due to the Kilcawley Center renovation project.
“It was moved outside of the construction fence area,” said Rebecca Rose, YSU spokeswoman, “Again, it’s temporary.”
The temporary location is closer to Cushwa Hall.
Kilcawley, the campus student center, is being renovated and updated to offer wide open spaces, a centralized dining area and a small theater in a more welcoming facility. Kilcawley opened in 1965, and university officials said at the time of the fundraising campaign launch that YSU was the last of the state’s 14 public universities to update its student center.
The boulder was originally placed in the courtyard next to the fountain outside Kilcawley in 1966. The tradition of students painting it started the following year.
In 1975, it was moved to the center’s south-center side, and in 2006 it moved to the building’s southeast side.
Plans call for the iconic YSU landmark to be moved closer to the new building, though it won’t return to its most recent spot.
The renovated Kilcawley is slated for completion in fall 2027. The area of the building that had opened last year to include food vendors closed as part of the latest work.
“Everybody who was in offices upstairs has moved out of there, and they’re starting to work in that area of the building as well,” Rose said.
The new layout will include more natural light, more open areas and a centralized dining area rather than food vendors spread across multiple locations.
Pictured at top: The boulder near Kilcawley Center at Youngstown State University is seen in this 1995 photo. (Youngstown State University Archives & Special Collections)