Calvin Alumni Association

✨ Alumni Event Alert: Last Chance for Gatsby! ✨
Old sport… tickets are going fast! There are still a few seats left for our Calvin alumni outing to The Great Gatsby with Broadway Grand Rapids — but not for long.

📍 DeVos Performance Hall, Grand Rapids
📅 Thursday, July 23, 2026
🕢 7:30–9:45 p.m.

Step into the Roaring Twenties with this Tony Award®-winning musical, described as a “Broadway extravaganza that explodes with life and energy.”

Join fellow Calvin alumni and friends for an unforgettable night of jazz, glamour, and storytelling brought to life on stage. Whether you're a longtime theater fan or just looking for a fun summer night out, this is one you won’t want to miss.

👉 Grab your tickets before they’re gone: https://calvin.edu/events/great-gatsby-broadway-grand-rapids-1784849400

Throwback Thursday: A Makeshift Residence Hall in 1946

Like many colleges across the country, Calvin experienced a dramatic surge in enrollment following the end of World War II. Student numbers jumped from 503 in the fall of 1945 to 1,245 just one year later.

At the time, on-campus housing was available for some women, while remaining women—and all men—lived in college‑approved private homes. By the fall of 1946, however, there simply weren’t enough homes to accommodate the influx of male students. In response, the college leased eight rooms and a basement in the Alexander School, located about half a mile from the Franklin campus. The building had already been condemned for classroom use, but it became a temporary solution—and quickly earned the nickname “Alexander Lodge.”

For $2.50 per week, men slept on army surplus bunks, fitting up to 15 students per classroom. Conditions were spartan: food was not permitted in the building, and hot water didn’t flow until mid‑October.

📸 Pictured here on September 16, 1946, are Kenneth Slager ’50 at the desk, Maurice Couwenhoven ’50 in the top bunk, and Harry Arnold ’50—making the most of college life during an extraordinary moment in Calvin’s history.