This historic space is home to staff from Student Support and Mentorship and the Thompson Scholar Program.
The house was built in 1916 by Dr. Rudolf J. Maas, the doctor for Franklin Mining Co. who also ran a private medical practice in his home. The home was majestic in its day, involving interior decorators from Duluth, Minnesota. The $45,000 cost to build it was not unusually high given the property was considered prime residential space due to its location next to the University and being on flat land.
Dr. Maas had eight children who filled four bedrooms on the second floor and two on the third. There was also a living room, dining room, kitchen, den, music room, sun room, two-part powder room, entry hall with circular staircase, three bathrooms, a large sitting room on the second floor, and four large storage closets. The property included a two-car garage and basement with a ballroom. The property was graced by maple, locust, spruce, hemlock, and cedar trees, as well as peony and rhubarb gardens.
The home was eventually bought for $8,500 in 1939 by Albert W. Quandt whose family later sold it to the University in 1961 for use as a residence for the University president.
Michigan Tech's fifth president, Dr. J. Robert Van Pelt (1922), and his family, lived in the house until his retirement in 1965 when President Raymond Smith and his family moved into the home, residing there until his retirement in 1979.
It became the Alumni House in 1980 and was the home of the Michigan Tech Alumni Association, Michigan Tech Student Foundation, Michigan Tech Fund and Corporate Development. At one time, the Michigan Tech Employees Federal Credit Union was located in the basement.