A reception to celebrate the opening of the Italian Room, the latest addition to Wayne State University's Ethnic Heritage Center, will be held at 5 p.m. Thursday, June 11, in room 160 General Lectures Building. The reception is open to the public.

The Italian Room offers attractive and comfortable surroundings where students can reflect on Italian culture while studying. It has three areas: a congregational section with large discussion tables, a soft seating area for casual conversation and interaction, and individual carrels for quiet study. Room design is by Rossetti Associates, a Birmingham architectural firm.

The Ethnic Heritage Center reflects the diverse cultural heritage of the many nationalities that make up metropolitan Detroit. Twelve other Ethnic Heritage Center rooms in the adjacent Manoogian Hall honor African American, Arabic, Armenian, Chinese, French, Greek, Hungarian, Japanese, Lithuanian, Polish, Romanian and Ukrainian ethnic groups.

Volunteer representatives of each group raised funds to design and furnish the ethnic rooms, which serve as classrooms, auditoriums and lounges for students and faculty. The fund-raising committee for the Italian Room was chaired by Marian Impastato of Grosse Pointe Shores.