photo by: GastingerWalker/KU

The rendering shows proposed changes to Dyche Hall that would incorporate an accessible entrance ramp.

A KU couple who loves museums is donating $1 million to provide a new accessible entrance to the University of Kansas Natural History Museum, a project that will create a new look for historic Dyche Hall.

Jann and Tom Rudkin have made the $1 million gift to construct a new, winding ramp along the front facade of Dyche Hall so that people with mobility issues won’t have to navigate the steps of the main entrance to get to the popular Natural History Museum.

The early-1900s building has an ADA-approved entrance currently, but it is located on the north end of the building and doesn’t lead directly to the prime areas of the Natural History Museum.

The Rudkins — who years ago spent their honeymoon museum-hopping — both have a desire to make the Natural History Museum an easy place to visit for everyone, according to a KU press release.

“This museum is a cultural institution,” Jann Rudkin said. “This will allow everyone regardless of mobility to experience the museum the way it was meant to be experienced. This is not just a ramp; it is a new beautiful entryway that will draw people in and showcase what a unique building it is.”

The project will mainly be located along the southeast front of the building, which is along Jayhawk Boulevard. Construction is expected to take place this summer. When completed, the entrance will lead to the museum’s Panorama exhibit, which is an exhibit that dates back to the late 1800s when KU Professor Lewis Lindsay Dyche created an exhibit of North American mammals for the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. The Panaroma has been a top draw for the museum for decades, as the site is a frequent destination for school field trips throughout the region.

The construction project, however, will create a new look for Dyche Hall, as the entrance will involve the construction of substantial retaining walls in front of the southeast corner of the building. In a press release, KU said the project will use local limestone to “maintain the look and grandeur of the building.”

photo by: Ann Dean/KU Endowment

Jann and Tom Rudkin

The Rudkins, who split time between Lawrence and San Francisco, have had a longtime association with the Natural History Museum. Jann Rudkin is a member of the KU Biodiversity Institute board of advisers, which encompasses the museum. Tom Rudkin — who gained renown in the software world as one of the two developers who wrote the initial version of PowerPoint for Macintosh computers — remembers being struck by the museum as a young Kansan.

“I can remember stopping through Lawrence and visiting the museum in eighth or ninth grade and thinking what a wonderful place it was,” he said.

The Rudkins’ $1 million gift will cover the cost to add the new entrance. Any money left after the construction will be used to help with an ongoing restoration of the Panorama exhibit. A major restoration of the exhibit has been years in the making, and is currently underway.

“The museum is in the process of stabilizing the environment in the Panorama, which prepares us for the next phase of renovation, including repairing and conserving the mounts, landforms and painted murals,” said Lori Schlenker, associate director of collections and facilities. “This will be a complex project as we figure out how to access specimens and murals while working around fragile, historic parts of the display.”