DETROIT - Wayne State University will celebrate the opening of a second new student residence hall in as many years with a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its $22 million South Residence Hall in the heart of campus at 9:30 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 25.
The six-story building, which accommodates 467 students, mostly freshmen, opened early this month for the fall semester. It is adjacent to North Residence Hall, which opened last year and houses 370 students. The two buildings are connected and share a kitchen, dining hall and short-order grille located in North Hall.
Wayne State's two new residence halls fill a longstanding need, expressed by prospective students and their parents, for more on-campus housing, according to President Irvin D. Reid. "Availability of on-campus housing can be a significant factor in the choice of a university by first-time students who live outside normal commuting range," he says. "From everything we have seen so far, students relish having a stronger residential campus."
The opening of North Hall, with its food service capabilities, a year ago enabled Wayne State to offer students who are living on campus a traditional room-and-board arrangement for the first time in about three decades. Both new housing facilities are at capacity. The university also operates several buildings that feature apartment-style living.
South Residence Hall has such amenities as high-speed Internet connections, cable television, telephone connections and private baths in each room; two lounges and a study room on each floor; a glass-walled, two-story high community room; laundry room; and pass-card security system. Most rooms are double-occupancy and several are equipped for persons with physical disabilities.
South Hall is the fifth new building completed at Wayne State in the past two years and is part of a campus master plan developed under Reid's leadership. Last year, in addition to North Residence Hall, the university opened a new Welcome Center, a Pharmacy and Health Sciences Building and a University Bookstore operated by Barnes and Noble.
Wayne State University is a premier institution of higher education offering more than 350 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to more than 31,000 students in metropolitan Detroit.