Many students have seen signs and emails advertising groups that meet in the “Egg” and have walked by the transparent space to see faculty holding meetings there. However, many students wonder what this room actually is, what it is used for, and how it got its unique nickname. 

The Egg, also known as the John R. Johnson Student Center Conference Room, is a new conference room between the cafeteria and Hackett. With transparent glass walls and more technology than any other conference room, the Egg serves as a multi-purpose space where faculty can hold meetings or find a quiet place to work, and student groups can meet with a faculty member present. The Egg was constructed in the summer of 2019 with funds from the Lack family. It got its name from PBDW Architects for the egg-like material used for the ceiling and its overall shape. 

Veteran students of Riverdale may remember what used to fill the space between the cafeteria and Hackett: lockers that few middle schoolers used, a dumping ground for backpacks, a hangout for students before school started, and most notably, a mountain of forgotten items forming a makeshift Lost and Found. As Head of School Mr. Dominic A.A. Randolph put it, “that space was very under-utilized and not very pretty” and as “one of the principal entries of the school, it seemed like a lousy way to come into the school.” Mr. Randolph and the Lack family asked architects for ideas to fill the space. As Randolph put it, they wanted something “where people felt they were getting welcomed into the school.”

Mr. Randolph and the Lack family landed on the Egg because they were aware of the fact that students constantly look for suitable places to do their work. The Student Center can be too loud or messy and the library may be too quiet, and there does not seem to be a middle ground. Mr. Randolph had in mind a space that students and faculty could book and do their work.

However, students can currently only use the Egg if a faculty member is present. Therefore, it is most commonly used for faculty meetings, a place for teachers to work, and meetings for student groups, like the Middle School Student Council and the Middle School Math Team. 

As a group meeting-space, the Egg offers many things that other conference rooms do not. According to Head of the Upper School Dr. Kelley Nicholson Flynn, the Egg is special because “the glass walls offer an aesthetic appeal and create transparency.” This contrasts with the other two conference rooms on campus. Mr. Randolph explains that “[the Mow Conference Room] is so grim...and when you’re in the Vinik Conference room you’re so out of the way. The Egg also holds a larger number of people than other spaces on campus. It can be flexible since users can move the chairs and tables around to fit their needs. Finally, it is equipped with more technology than other conference rooms, allowing people to connect during meetings.” According to Dr. Nicholson-Flynn, “often in meetings, people have their heads in their computers, but with a large screen, everyone can look at something together.”

Experiences using the Egg are mixed. Academic Dean of Middle and Upper Schools Mr. Kevin Bailey has worked alone in the Egg and finds it a great space to do work. He appreciates the glass walls, explaining that “it is a mix between the privacy of the Mow Conference Room and the public feel of the cafeteria. It wasn’t as loud, but I didn’t feel like I was all by myself.” 

Middle School math teacher Ms. Monika Le has been using the space for the Middle School Math Team. The Math Team started using the Egg because of how few spaces there are on campus to meet. Ms. Le was drawn to the space “because it’s very modular: all the desks move, the chairs are very multi-purpose, and there are little benches and little desks you can pull up.” However, she gets nervous with having a group of students that move around in the presence of such expensive technology. Although the technology was supposed to be a selling-point, it can be a liability for a group of young students if something gets broken. And while the space is considered large compared to other conference rooms, it is pretty small for such a large group of middle-schoolers.  

Despite its current usage, the way Riverdale uses the room may change completely. Although students can only utilize the room with faculty present to prevent it from becoming a messy space, Mr. Randolph is still thinking through ways that students can use the Egg. Mr. Randolph wants to ensure that the Egg is taken care of, but is “hopeful that it can be a space where people can do quiet work, they can meet and talk, and it will be useful to people,” as was his original goal. Going forward, hopefully all members of the Riverdale community will benefit from this innovative, new facility on campus.