HASTE MAKES WASTE. A columnist in the Northern Star counsels caution on quickly replacing Cole Hall.

While Gov. Blagojevich is talking big about a $40 million state-of-the-art learning facility funded by Illinois taxpayers’ money, it is impossible to overlook the financial reality that is Springfield politics.

NIU has an immediate need in determining the future of Cole Hall, but NIU also has needs that have existed and seemingly been ignored in Springfield for years.

The Stevens Building has needed money for renovation for nearly 10 years now, as President Peters attested to in a Northern Star story nearly one year ago.

Last March, the Northern Star editorial board wrote an open letter to Gov. Blagojevich elaborating on the condition of the Stevens Building and illustrating how badly money was needed to make proper renovations and repairs.

Upon receiving the board’s letter, Gov. Blagojevich triumphantly announced in planning for fiscal year 2008 that he had included $19 million for Stevens Building work. It was exciting to feel like our governor was indeed listening to us and taking initiative in supporting our education as college students.

The problem: Our $19 million for the Stevens Building never made it to NIU. Like so much else having to do with funding in Illinois, it seems to have disappeared somewhere in Springfield.

To date, the Stevens Building remains at No. 10 on the priority list for higher education capital improvements in the Fiscal Year 2009 Budget Recommendations for Higher Education.

The Chicago Tribune concurs.

After last spring's tragedy at Virginia Tech, the university formed a task force to decide the fate of Norris Hall, the site of the shootings. Late last year, the university's president announced that the three-story building would be used for a new Center for Peace Studies and Violence Prevention.

Many embraced that prospect. One alum spoke of transforming the scene of carnage into "an area where good things can happen." A Virginia Tech student told the Daily Press of Newport News, Va., "It's still weird to walk by Norris sometimes. It's still creepy and scary, but it's part of our campus now. I think it's better to use it for the better than to keep it as a deep, dark secret."

So, let's think about the decision on Cole Hall.

"Together forward" requires thought about what direction "forward" is. Although the Tribune offer a positive spin on Virginia Tech's decision, that university has conferred gravitas on a faddish and ideologically-tainted not-quite-a-discipline. Northern Illinois can do better.