Ruane Friar Development Center Groundbreaking

Media Advisory:
Providence College to Break Ground for the Ruane Friar Development Center
Saturday, October 1, 2016, noon, in front of Alumni Hall 

Providence, R.I. – Providence College (PC) will break ground for the Ruane Friar Development Center on Saturday, October 1, 2016 at noon. The ceremony willl take place in front of Alumni Hall at the northwest edge of the College’s campus.  (Media should plan to enter campus via Wardlaw Avenue off of River Avenue. Parking will be available in the gated lot on Wardlaw Avenue.) 

This new, multi-purpose facility attached to Alumni Hall and Slavin Center will include a two-court basketball practice facility and space for associated Department of Athletics activities. Additionally, the Ruane Friar Development Center will include the construction of an atrium spanning Alumni Hall and Slavin Center, an athletic training center, offices, a new Friar Athletics Hall of Fame, and a dining room, along with other infrastructure improvements.  This will set the stage for Phase II of the project, which will feature a new Center for Career Education and Professional Development and an expanded, renovated ’64 Hall (the College’s largest function facility, located in Slavin Center). 

A lead gift by Former PC Board of Trustees Chair Michael A. Ruane ’71 & ’13Hon. and his wife, Elizabeth, is the catalyst making this two phase project possible. 

Phase I construction is expected to be completed in January 2018. Phase II construction will commence shortly afterwards at a time that will maximize efficiency relative to work on Phase I, while minimizing any disruption to student life and activities. 

Participating in the groundbreaking ceremony will be Michael Ruane, Providence College President Rev. Brian Shanley, O.P. ’80, Providence College Athletic Director Robert G. Driscoll, PC Head Men’s Basketball Coach Ed Cooley and PC Head Women’s Basketball Coach Jim Crowley. 

Founded in 1917, Providence College is the only college or university in the United States administered by the Dominican Friars. The Catholic, liberal arts college has an undergraduate enrollment of approximately 3,900 students and offers degrees in 49 academic majors.  Since 1997, Providence College has consistently been ranked among the top five regional universities in the north according to U.S. News & World Reports’ “America’s Best Colleges.”

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