One of the most photographed buildings on the SDSU campus is Hepner Hall, which was initially named the Academic Building. It stands at the south end of the Quad and was the original pedestrian entrance to the campus. Designed by Howard Spencer Hazen and completed in 1930, Hepner Hall contains a number of design influences and motifs.

Entrance to the building is gained through the building's impressive portales. Two massive turrets frame the Catalonian-style imitation cut stone archway, which is topped by an open-faced Mission-style bell tower, or campanario, that bridges the distance between the conical red tile roofs of the twin turrets. Foliage-decorated columns with spiral-carved shafts line the second-story breezeways on each side of the turrets.

Inside the archway is a ribbed Moorish-style arch vaulted ceiling with a simulated Moorish wrought iron lantern hanging from its center. A decorative band of turquoise and white tile winds around the two entrance doors and along the walls of the interior of the portales.

Hepner Hall originally housed classrooms and faculty offices. In 1975, it was rehabilitated to meet earthquake standards, which involved reinforcing the walls with steel, adding special joints that absorb earthquake impact, modifying a stairwell, and adding a new heating system. At that time, the building became the new home of the School of Social Work.

Walter R. Hepner, the third president of SDSU, died in January 1976. The Academic Building was renamed in his honor on January 19, 1976.

The School of Social Work still makes its home in Hepner Hall, as do the Department of Gerontology and the University Center on Aging. Faculty offices and research centers also are housed in Hepner Hall. Classrooms are used for meetings and lectures.

Hepner Hall is still the main icon for SDSU and serves as the centerpiece of the new SDSU logo.