Noyes House
Emma Hartman Noyes House (commonly shortened to Noyes House) is the most recently built dorm on Vassar Campus. Noyes's house color is cerulean blue, and its mascot is a Narwhal. Noyes generally houses 178 students. It is situated between Cushing House and the Deece. The building is curved and faces the Noyes Circle (Nircle).
| Noyes House | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Noyes in October 2024 | |
| Capacity | ~178 |
| Open to | All students |
| Color | Cerulean blue |
| Mascot | Narwal |
| Links | |
Construction
Noyes House was designed by Eero Saarinen. It was originally designed to be a full semi-circle, but only a quarter-circle was built. Construction was completed in 1958.
Add information: https://offices.vassar.edu/residential-life/residence-halls/noyes/
https://vcencyclopedia.vassar.edu/buildings-grounds-technology/buildings/emma-hartman-noyes-house/
Rooms
Vassar's YouTube has a dorm tour video of Noyes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgJ_r4SJrw0
Doubles
There are ..... standard double in Noyes. They range from having dimensions of ... to ... and each have two triangular bay window seats. Above the seats are orb lights, and there are radiators under the seats. There are 9? particular doubles that have different dimensions, as they are not Nircle-facing. They are located at the far ends and the middle of each floor, except for the first.
Singles
Noyes Singles range from having dimensions of ... to .... The only singles with bay windows are the ones on the first floor, facing the Nircle. The rest of the singles are on the other side of the dorm and have flat windows with a flat circular light above, and radiators at the bottom. These windows face Cushing, the graveyard and the Deece.
Room furniture
Each single comes with a bed, desk, spinny chair, tall dresser, and built-in shelf on the wall. Each double comes with two of these items. Each single has two outlets, and each double has three(?). I will add the dimensions later!
Common rooms
On the first floor, Noyes has a lobby and two large common rooms. Every floor has two kitchenettes and bathrooms per floor. The basement has multiple rooms.
Noyes Lobby
The Noyes Lobby (or Nobby) is the main entrance room. It has two doors facing the Nircle with a vestibule, and one door facing the road. The elevator (Nelevator) is opposite to the vestibule. The Nobby typically has a rectangular table and a chair in it. From the Nobby, you can go to either exit, up or down the stairs or elevator, to the hallway with rooms that leads to the MPR, to the study room that is attached, or to the Jetsons Lounge.
Jetsons Lounge
Central to the first floor of Noyes is the lounge, affectionately labeled "the Jetsons Lounge" (referencing the show The Jetsons) due to its retro-futurist design.[1] The lounge includes a sunken conversation pit, referred to by Noyesians as the "Passion Pit". Around the Passion Pit are various circular tables and chairs (some of this furniture might be replaced soon), as well as a printer and a Steinway piano.
Entering Jetsons from the Nobby, one would encounter:
- Jetsons kitchen (the largest kitchen in the dorm)
- Storage room and single-stall bathroom (known by some as the "poop deck") and
- The old computer room (which is currently empty, and might be turned into a workout room)
- The main room with the Passion Pit
- Two study rooms without doors that each contain a whiteboard, and some tables and chairs.
Past the study rooms is the Southwest staircase, past which are the apartments of the House Advisor and the House Fellow(s).
Multi Purpose Room
The Multi Purpose Room (MPR) was an addition to the Northeast side of the building, past the first floor singles. It has a high counter built into the Nircle- facing- window wall with stools to work at. There are also various stools and tall tables. At the back there is a ping-pong table, two vending machines, and a small couch. To the right of the entrance there is a TV that students to connect to with an HDMI cable. In front of the TV is a round couch that has a counter on the back. Behind this couch is the MPR kitchen, which has a piano, a fridge and cabinets (and probably a stove?). From the kitchen there are stairs to the basement. The MPR tends to get very hot at the start of the year.
Basement
The Noyes basement is an ominous place. It can be accessed from either of the two main staircases, the Nellevator, and the MPR kitchen stairs. Entering from the MPR stairs and walking through, one would encounter:
- House Team closet
- Door that says "Women 3"
- Empty room
- An employee break room
- Ceramics studio
- Men's Guest Bathroom (which no one uses and is basically gender-neutral)
- The stairs and Nelevator
- Two fenced-off storage areas
- Wide room where bikes are stored, with a low ceiling due to the passion pit (If you are taller than 5'3 watch our for pipes by your head), with a table with a plaster cast of half of a body
- Two laundry rooms
- Open room with chairs, tables, and a rug
- The "Blow Dicks" door (likely used to say "Below Ducts" but has been continuously drawn over)
Other floors
On each of the second, third and fourth floor, there are two kitchenettes and two gender-neutral bathrooms. Each of these floors are divided in half by a fire door. The bathrooms each have a wall of cubbies, a large mirror with four sinks, four toilet stalls, and three shower stalls. The kitchenettes vary slightly in size, but all contain a sink, microwave, cabinet, stove-top and rubbish bins. There are also some nooks that were used as phone booths on each floor.
House Team
Noyes House Team typically consists of 6 Stufels, 3 Cofels, 3 HFIs, an HSA, HP and VP. Eva Fontanez is the current House Advisor.
Projects
Next year, Noyes House Team hopes to paint a mural on the main stairwell of various aquatic habitats and levels of depth. To get involved, contact Fia Marrison!
Noise on Noyes
Each spring, Noyes House Team hosts Noise on Noyes, an all-campus event. It is held in the spring semester, in mid to late April. It features student bands, has free food, student clothing sales, and other activities. Though it is always a fun event when in Jetsons or the Aula, for at least the past five years House Team has hoped to host it on the Nircle, but it has rained (and in 2025 snowed) every time. Hopefully next year the curse will be broken.
Past house chants
- "Make, some, Noyes!!! (to the tune of Pitbull's Hotel Room) Ba ba ba ba BA ba ba meet me at the passion pit Ba ba ba ba BA ba ba meet me at the passion pit!"(Pose as a Narwhal)
- "No! Yes! No! Yes! No! Yes! No! Yes! Make, some, Nooooyes"(Scream)
- "Who are we?" "Noyes House!" "What are we?" "Gnarly!" "You mess with the Narwhal you get the horn!"
- "Who are we?" "Narwhals!" "What are we?" "Gnarly!" "Make, some, Noooyes!" "(to the tune of Katseye's Gnarly) Na-na-na-nana gnarly, na-na-na-nana narwhals, na-na-na-nana gnarly, everything's Noyes House!"