Sept. 19, 2002--The University community is invited to attend the dedication of Du Pont Hall, home of the College of Engineering, at a ceremony at 4:30 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 22, in Mitchell Hall, with a reception and tours of Du Pont Hall immediately following. Anyone wishing to attend should contact Sharon Dorr, director of Alumni and University Relations, by calling 831-8741 or by e-mail at [sdorr@udel.edu].

Speakers will include UD President David P. Roselle, Howard E. Cosgrove, chairman of the Board of Trustees, internationally renowned architect Allan Greenberg and Carol Hoffecker, Richards Professor of History at UD, who will speak on the history of The Green.

A flag parade with more than 100 students bearing international and U.S. state flags will take place in homage to industrialist and philanthropist P.S. du Pont, who funded UD’s study abroad program in 1923—the first in the nation—and the benefactor for whom the building is named. Some students will be in native dress.

Completed in 1958, Du Pont Hall has undergone a two-year, $27 million expansion and renovation, which began in June 2000. The three-story addition of 60,000 square feet houses state-of-the-art engineering research laboratories and equipment, as well as administrative and faculty office space. The new exterior was designed to be in keeping with the Georgian style architecture of other buildings on The Green, and its pillared façade complements Gore Hall across The Green. The area outside Du Pont Hall has been restored with brick walkways, new trees and other plantings.