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| Vol. 17, No. 7 | Oct. 16, 1997 |
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| Vol. 17, No. 7 | Oct. 16, 1997 |
Tomorrow will mark the dedication of the University's newest building, MBNA America Hall, located at the corner of Amstel Avenue and Orchard Road.
All members of the University community are invited to the 4 p.m. ceremony, in front of the new building, which will include the presentation of a UD Medal of Distinction to Donald J. Puglisi, MBNA America Business Professor of Finance. After the ceremony, tours of the new College of Business and Economics building will be conducted. (In the event of rain, the ceremony will move to Mitchell Hall.)
Echoing the Georgian architecture of the Mall, the brick and concrete building includes white accents, with details similar to those on the main campus. The 46,000-gross-square-foot building is three stories high and features a glass-walled Chaplin Tyler Atrium with skylights and four 70-seat case study classrooms. In addition, the building houses the dean's office, space for the Small Business Development Center, the Center for Economic Education and Entrepreneurship, the MBA Program and the Department of Business Administration, 39 faculty offices and three conference rooms.
A glass bridge across Orchard Road connects the atrium of MBNA America Hall with the main entry level of Purnell Hall, which also has been extensively renovated as part of this project.
Architect for the project was the Stubbins Associates Inc. of Cambridge, Mass., and construction manager was Wohlsen Construction Co. of New Castle.
The total project cost is $15 million, with $11 million from the state and $4 million in private gifts, including $2.5 million from MBNA America and $1 million from benefactor Chaplin and Elizabeth Tyler of Hockessin, as well as generous gifts from Henri and Rhoda Bertuch of Oyster Bay Cove, N.Y.; Delmarva Power; the DuPont Co.; the Jack Lingo family of Rehoboth Beach; J.P. Morgan Co. Inc.; PNC Bank; and Wilmington Trust.
Photographs by Jack Buxbaum
