The Student Union Building was one of two major construction projects completed on campus in 1955.

In November 1955, some 55 elected territorial delegates assembled in the new building to draft a constitution for Alaska, with the hopes of reviving the stalled statehood movement. The delegates were able to draft a constitution written by and for the people rather than special interests because no lobbyists were present. The delegates spent 75 days working on the document and signed it in what is today Signers’ Hall, on Feb. 8, 1956. The Student Union Building was rededicated later in 1956 as Constitution Hall in honor of the document created there. Congress ratified the state constitution in 1958. President Eisenhower signed it Jan. 3, 1959, and Alaska was admitted as the 49th state in the union.

Today, the building is home to the alumni association, bookstore, barbershop, post office and KSUA-FM, the student-managed radio station.

Aurora magazine: Happy 50th birthday, Alaska

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