EIU Lumination Set to Commemorate Charleston and Mattoon Graduations

Eastern Illinois University is set to commemorate Mattoon and Charleston's graduation ceremonies by illuminating EIU's Old Main, aka the "Castle". On the evenings of Thursday, May 16 and Friday May 17, Old Main will be illuminated in red and gold in commemoration of Charleston High School’s graduation activities. The actual ceremony is set to begin at 8 p.m. Friday in EIU’s Lantz Arena.

To commemorate Mattoon's graduation, the building will be decorated in green and gold on the evenings of Thursday, May 23 and Friday, May 24. Mattoon High School will hold its commencement at 8 p.m. that Friday at the high school.

A programmable lighting system allows Eastern to celebrate university and community events. The system was installed in response to Eastern’s efforts, in working with the city of Charleston, to create a “collaborative landscape/streetscape plan” from the Neal Welcome Center, located at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Douglas Street, eastward to 18th Street (Route 130).

In addition to helping provide a welcoming corridor along Lincoln Avenue, it's hoped the new lighting system will strengthen the connection between campus and the community, and showcase the building's architectural features.