Faculty members who work and teach in Ellis Hall will move out this summer for a remodeling project, but they'll move back in to a revamped building with a new lounge, more office space and larger classrooms.

Construction will begin in mid-June and last through Aug. 14, said Dorothy Anderson, assistant to the chairwoman in the English department and the on-site coordinator for this summer's renovations.

"The building is going to be undergoing some pretty substantial renovations over the summer," Anderson said.

Construction crews will replace old electrical wiring, put in new circuit breaker boxes and remodel the wings of the building, Anderson said.

Remodeling efforts will cost about $500,000, and the electrical updates will cost about $300,000, said John Kotowski, director of facilities management. Most of the money comes from the state capital improvement budget.

In addition to state funds, Ohio University's College of Arts and Sciences has contributed money to the project, Anderson said.

Along with the electrical work, the building's wings will be renovated and some classrooms on the second and third floors will be replaced by offices, Anderson said.

After renovations are complete, the first floor will have a faculty lounge, a conference room and another 45-student classroom, making a total of three classrooms this size in the building, she said.

"Having the common lounge space will really add to the cooperative feel of the building," Anderson said.

Ellis now contains two computer labs, but after the renovations, it will have two computer classrooms and one computer lab available for student use, she said.

This fall, the philosophy department will move into the building and Ellis will house all of the humanities departments, said Joyce Kohan, assistant dean of arts and sciences.

During the renovations, summer classes and Precollege classes scheduled to be in Ellis Hall will be relocated to various buildings on campus, including Gordy Hall and Clippinger Hall, Kohan said.

In addition to affecting summer classes, many faculty members will work out of their homes because of a lack of office space, she said.

Precollege orientation classes previously held in Ellis will be moved to Morton Hall and Jefferson Hall, said Andrew Cinoman, director of Precollege.