NDSU Barry Hall

Welcome to Barry Hall — the home of the NDSU College of Business in the heart of downtown Fargo. Here you’ll find everything you need to know about the building, from where to park and how to reserve a space, to grabbing a coffee and learning a bit of history along the way.

Mailing Address Physical Address
NDSU Dept 2400 PO Box 6050 811 2nd Ave N
Fargo ND 58108-6050 Fargo ND 58102

Office/Tower Wing Monday - Friday 7am - 5pm
Saturday - Sunday Closed
Classroom Wing Monday - Thursday 7am - 7am
Friday 7am - 5pm
Saturday - Sunday Closed
Holiday, Break, & Summer Hours Monday - Friday (Main entrance only) 7:30am - 4pm

Student and Faculty/Staff Building Access:

  • Students have key card access to the classroom wing Monday through Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., and Sunday from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., during the academic year.
  • Faculty/Staff have 24/7 key card access to the building.

In addition to street parking, Barry Hall offers a variety of parking lots that provide quick and easy access to our building.

Guests may park in any of the following lots: BH, KH, or ELIM. You may also use the visitor parking spaces on the southeast side of Barry Hall. Before you park—or immediately after—please stop by the Dean’s Suite (Room 102) to request a parking validation.

Students are encouraged to use the MatBus, which runs to and from the main campus every ten minutes.

**NDSU College of Business strives to be a good neighbor and member of the FM community. Please help us with this by NOT parking in the Sons of Norway parking lot to the east of Barry Hall. Thank you.**

ELIM Paylot

Purchase a Visitor Parking Pass

NDSU Parking Lot Map

Students in the panel.

Building Reservations

Barry Hall has 13 clasrooms and 7 event spaces that may be reserved by NDSU and non-NDSU entities for meetings and events. Reservations are facilitated through NDSU Conference and Event Services.

Barry Hall Micro Market & Grazing Grounds

A Fresh Look With More Convenience

Opening fall 2025, NDSU Dining is revamping our beloved coffee shop into a modern Micro Market to better serve our students, faculty, and staff. This exciting transition means more variety, better amenities, and extended hours to fit your busy schedule.

What's New?
  • Expanding Offerings: More grab-and-go meals, snacks, coffee, and beverages that are restocked regularly for the freshest options.
  • Self-Checkout: A quick and easy way to pay.
    • Block plans will still be accepted!
  • Enhanced Seating & Amenities: More seating, additional microwaves, and plug-in stations for studying.
  • Extended Hours: Access the market at any time while you are studying, working, or going to class at Barry Hall.

Learn more at NDSU Dining.

Grazing grounds coffee lounge rendering

History of Richard H. Barry Hall

Richard H. Barry Hall became home to NDSU’s College of Business and the Department of Agriculture and Applied Economics in 2009. Richard H. Barry Hall encompasses the former Pioneer Mutual Life Insurance building and a 75,000-square foot addition in downtown Fargo. Constructed in 1925, the original building was completely renovated to provide faculty and students a world-class environment for transformational learning and research.

Barry Hall is home to the nation’s first university lab dedicated to the marketing of agriculture commodities. The trading room is equipped with state-of-the-art technology for students and faculty to monitor and analyze markets in real time. The building also features 13 other classrooms, 13 conference rooms, a 284-seat auditorium, student study areas, a branch of the NDSU library, a coffee shop, and six-story faculty office building.

The late R.H. "Dick" Barry was a renowned financial consultant and economic catalyst who was described as "Fargo's doctor of financially ill businesses."

When Barry quit high school in 1926 to go to work as a messenger for First National Bank in Minneapolis, it was the beginning of a remarkable career in banking and business.

In 1935, as a young banker, Barry established the first installment loan department with the First National Bank, Bismarck, N.D. He came up with a plan in which people could consolidate their debts over a 12-month period with equal payments. Two years later, he set up a similar program at Midland National Bank in Billings, Montana.

Highly active in community business, political and civic activities his entire life, Barry helped organize the Bismarck chapter of the Junior Chamber of Commerce. At 26 years of age, he was elected a director of the First State Bank of Hebron, N.D.

In 1938, he was appointed to the executive committee to commemorate the 50th anniversary of North Dakota becoming a state.
Richard Barry transferred to Merchants Bank and Trust in Fargo in 1939. In 1943, he was named executive vice president of the Fargo Chamber of Commerce. In 1945, Barry became an officer with a company that would later become Smith Inc.
In 1948, he was asked to be the North Dakota campaign and finance chair for the Harold Stassen for U.S. President Campaign. The request came from future M.N. Gov. Elmer L. Andersen and future Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court Warren Burger.

In 1953, he set out on his own, establishing Barry and Company. He quickly established a strong reputation for helping to save small businesses and banks for local ownership. Barry was considered a master of engineering corporate sales and developing financing plans. For instance, he was instrumental in organizing efforts to build the Southern Red River Valley Sugarbeet Corp. plant near Wahpeton.

In 1955, he formed the Martin Barry Central America Co., a western hemisphere trading company.

Barry held leadership roles for many business ventures, including serving as chair of the board of Dakota Electric Supply Co., assistant to the president of Dakota National Bank and a director of the E.A. Moline Construction Co., Jamestown. He also owned the Hallmark Remembrance Shop, Fargo. He was nominated for the board of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Barry’s activities and interests were wide ranging. For 25 years, he was a director, vice president and executive committee member of the North Dakota Automobile Club. He was vice chair of the state’s Economic Development Commission, campaign and finance chair of the Cass County Republican Committee, a state official for the American Cancer Society and a member of the Governor’s National Committee for the Eisenhower Presidential Library, Abilene, Kan. He was active in the American Red Cross, Civil Defense Program, Fargo Elks Lodge and the Pelican Lake Property Owners Association.

Barry discussed his career and philosophy in the book, “Success From Within; First We Make our Goals–And Then They Make Us,” which was copyrighted in 1981.

He and wife, Louise, were married in 1933. They had two daughters, Susan and Lynne, and a son, John.

The Barry Foundation is located in Fargo. Its mission statement reads, “The Barry Foundation is a family foundation that affirms its founder’s life-long philanthropic spirit and vision. Emphasis is placed on proactive philanthropy where opportunity is created to benefit individuals and communities both locally and globally.”

Classroom Wing
Room # Name Purpose
120 Scheels (Fred & Virginia Scheel) classroom
126 Bell State Bank & Trust education classroom
130 Ken and Jan Promersberger group study room
258 Dawson Insurance (Robert & Edith Dawson) conference room
262 Otter Tail Corporation classroom
266 Ron and Karen Offutt classroom
274 Eugene and Lila E. Dahl computer lab
356 Jim and Sandra Roers conference room
360 Gate City Bank classroom
362 Ulteig Engineers, Inc. group study room
370 CHS classroom
374 Warner and Company Insurance group study room
Atrium
Room # Name Purpose
Atrium Beaton (Darrow and Elinor Landgrebe Beaton) atrium
110 Eide Bailly, LLP board room
119 Tim Flakoll and Bev Adams office
140 AgCountry Farm Credit Services auditorium
Louise S. Barry Auditorium event space
Atrium
Room # Name Purpose
100 Ivan and Minnette Johnson reception area
100F Alerus Financial reception area
102 Boarder States Electric Dean’s Suite
102E Ron and Alyce Johnson office
102H Dr. Robert and Laura Spolum executive in residence office
102J Aggregate Industries office
102K Tim O. and Claudette Peterson office
102L Paul and Connie Horn conference room
104 The Alsop Family NICE Collective
104A Mark and Kandice Bierle student space (vacant)
104B Charles and Betty Corwin office
200 Erik and Leia Skie Accounting & Information Systems Department suite
354 Bremer Bank conference room
418 Joe Peltier conference room
446 Sportsman’s Guide graduate student resource
500 Phil and Dianna Hansen Agribusiness & Applied Economics Department suite
552 Ray Grabanski, Progressive Ag conference room
600 Ralph, Allan, Ronald and Patrick Peterson conference room
(in loving memory of Philip and Agnes Peterson)