The long-awaited grand opening celebration of the Hallie Brown Ford Fine Arts Center will be held Sept. 25 and 26 [FRIDAY and SATURDAY] at East Central University.
Dr. Mark Hollingsworth, chair of the Music Department at East Central University, unpacks boxes in his new office in the Hallie Brown Ford Fine Arts Center. Classes will meet in the new facility on the first day of school on Aug. 17. A dedication ceremony will be held Sept. 25. Tours of the building and a show about ECU's past, "ECU, A Year in the Life: Celebrating 100," are planned for Sept. 25 and 26.
A dedication ceremony will begin at 4 p.m. Sept. 25 [FRIDAY] and tours of the 75,000 square-foot facility will be conducted from 3 to 3:45 p.m. and from 5 to 7 p.m.
The celebration will include the first performances in the 1,000-seat Ataloa Theatre. "ECU, A Year in the Life: Celebrating 100," a light-hearted look at 100 years of ECU's history, will be presented at 7 p.m. Sept. 25 and 26. Tickets for free admission will be available soon.
Tours of the fine arts center also will be conducted from 5 to 7 p.m. before the Saturday show on Sept. 26.
"The construction has been a long process," said ECU President John Hargrave, "but the wait has been worthwhile. This is a magnificent facility and we look forward to showing it off to the community."
Faculty and staff members have begun moving offices, band instruments and other equipment, and contractors are working to complete final projects before classes begin Aug. 17.
The grand opening, a veterans appreciation event and an ice cream social are part of several events during a Week of Celebration from Sept. 21 through Sept. 26 marking ECU's Centennial. The school's first classes were held on Sept. 20, 1909.
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