A digital special section of | Subscribe


Gerald Ferris

Gerald Ferris

Management professor | Florida State University | Class of 1982

Gerald Ferris led two lives at Illinois — first as a Ph.D. student in business administration (1978-82), then as a professor in labor and industrial relations, business administration and psychology (1989-99).

But during both stretches, the now-Francis Eppes Professor of Management at Florida State frequented two places so many times, he lost count.

No. 1: the Armory. "I was an avid runner back in those days, and would log many miles a week on the Armory track. It was so convenient to take the underground tunnel over to Huff Gym to change clothes and shower after a run, which was particularly nice during the winter. Both as a student and a faculty member, I spent a lot of time at the Armory."

No. 2: the Round Barn, off-campus at Springfield and Mattis. "Back in the old days, when I was a student, that was a popular place to go to dinner, happy hour in the afternoon on a Friday, or to celebrate a special occasion," he says. "I do not necessarily remember the food as being that great, but you could not beat the atmosphere — what a great old place."