MacMurray College is beginning to sort through some of the final days of its closure. In an email to alumni yesterday, the college named the auction house that will be in charge of selling the college within the next 4 months and gave dates for the final days for the library and the college’s president.
President Beverly Rodgers will continue her service to the MacMurray Board of Trustees through September 30th along with a small group of other essential staff. The Board of Trustees has signed an agreement to work with leading auction house Williams & Williams to sell the 60-acre campus in its entirety. The auction is likely to take place within the next 90-120 days. Separate online auctions are also being planned for more than 40 paintings by the artist and former MacMurray professor Nellie Knopf as well as a much more wide-ranging auction of non-essential campus furnishings. Alumni will be advised of all three auction dates as far in advance as possible, once terms have been agreed. The Henry Pfeiffer Library will officially close June 30th. Furnishings and books are currently being relocated and sold to various locations.
The MacMurray Foundation and Alumni Association has been approved as a new Illinois nonprofit corporation and an application has been filed with the office of the Illinois Attorney General to allow for acceptance of donations and solicitations for support. Application to the IRS for a formal charitable organization also will be filed. The Alumni Association is currently working with the college to preserve history and transfer the college’s archive to a different location.
The alumni association is also in charge of the Founder’s Day Homecoming celebration which has been set for the weekend of October 9th-11th in Jacksonville. Various events are planned throughout town for the weekend, including a musical performance by 1981 alumni Rick Hall and his wife Laura and a parade on Saturday, October 10th. Professor Emeritus Dr. Allan Metcalf will serve as parade marshal. A final decision based on COVID-19 restrictions for the weekend is expected on September 1st with alternative dates for the homecoming set for June 11th-13th, 2021.