press release

Averett University dedicates its brand new student center

Included in the center is a 300-seat dining hall, coffee shop, game room, rooftop terrace, offices and more

By BERNARD BAKER, The Danville Register & Bee
© April 9, 2007

DANVILLE - Averett University will dedicate its $8.2 million student center in a ceremony later this week.

The dedication ceremony is set for 4 p.m. Thursday at the center, located on Averett’s main campus.

Averett University President Richard Pfau, Averett Board of Trustees Chairman Claude Owen and Danville Mayor Wayne Williams will speak at the event.

Pfau said the 35,000-square-foot center stands as a valuable campus and community asset. The center has been open since August and Pfau believes it has had a “transformative effect on the community.”

“When you walk through the student center halls on a typical day, you not only see students and faculty talking together, but you also see members of the Danville community enjoying lunch and getting to know our students,” Pfau said Monday in a written statement. “This student center has transformed campus life and provided an enjoyable environment for our neighbors.”

Work on the building began in October 2004. Included in the center is a 300-seat dining hall, a coffee shop, game room, rooftop terrace, offices and wireless computing capabilities.

The dedication service will allow Averett the opportunity to honor people who contributed to the project.

“Thursday’s dedication will be the capstone event in the student center project,” Pfau said in the release. “It will be an opportunity for us to thank individual supporters and to express our appreciation to the citizens of Southside Virginia.”

Averett spokeswoman Susan Huckstep said the student center has become a community gathering point. The dining hall is often busy with people eating lunch after Sunday church services.

Averett students requested the university offer a more upscale food menu, including international foods, grilled selections, vegetarian meals and traditional comfort food. There will be extended hours for dining hall service in the main dining room and in the new Jut’s Café.

VMDO Architects, a Charlottesville firm whose work includes the University of Virginia’s new John Paul Jones Arena, designed the building. Blair Construction in Gretna built the center

VMDO Architects was founded in 1976 and is the youngest firm to receive the T. David Fitz-Gibbon Virginia Architecture Award, the most prestigious honor given by the Virginia Society of American Institute of Architects.

For further information, interview, and photography opportunities in reference to this project and VMDO Architects, please contact William Bishop at 434.296.5684, email at bishop@vmdo.com.