It's strictly functional and not at all symbolic. We went to Director of Facilities Operations & Management John Gratiot and found that in the late 1970s there was a renovation done in Dartmouth Hall where the balcony of 105 Dartmouth, the historic lecture hall in the center of the building, was removed and new classrooms were added in the space occupied by the former balcony.
With the renovation, the area of the building just inside the central doors facing the Dartmouth Green became a small lounge, accessed from the north and south hallways in the front of the building. Gratiot tells us that, based on a report from a custodian who has been working in Dartmouth Hall since the renovations, the doors have never been used, except on Dartmouth Night when it is helpful to use the doors for getting people and equipment set up on the front steps.
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