Seton Hall University Center, photo credit: Seton Hall University 

(SOUTH ORANGE, NJ) -- Seton Hall University is pleased to announce a $10 million anonymous commitment toward its recently renovated University Center. Since the ribbon was cut last November on this monumental project, alumni, friends and corporate benefactors have continued to invest in the latest upgrade to the University’s South Orange campus.

Wanting to “re-activate” the 60-year-old building and deliver a 21st-century experience for the students was the primary motivator for the donor. Now the 48,000-square-foot student hub is one of the most eye-catching features on campus.

Several alumni and supporters have stepped up and invested in this important resource for students who frequent the University Center to collaborate, create, inspire, and innovate. The building houses the main dining facilities, a theatre, student-focused club rooms, a media studio, an art gallery, event space, lounge and study space, and the offices of Inclusivity and Student Services. New outdoor amenities include an amphitheater, meditation garden, fire pit, and sun-filled dining patio.

Since November, the space has hosted such esteemed guests as Billie Jean King, tennis legend and advocate for women athletes; Ambassador Csaba Kőrösi, President of the 77th Session of the UN; and Archbishop Christophe Pierre, Apostolic Nuncio (the Vatican’s ambassador to the United States).

“Since the refurbished University Center has opened, students enthusiastically build community in the lounges, dining halls, and activity rooms,” said Vice President of Student Services, Monica Burnette, Ph.D. “We are enormously grateful to all the donors who have made this space possible. The impact of their investments is visible and audible: the building is alive with learning, growing, and simply having fun.”

The renovation of the University Center is one of several capital projects throughout the South Orange campus in recent years. Boland Hall, one of the University’s oldest residence halls, has undergone renovations and additions. Walsh Gymnasium, where the women’s basketball, volleyball, and at times men’s basketball teams practice and play their games, has been completely renovated. The Stillman School of Business Trading Room in Jubilee Hall has been expanded and upgraded with state-of-the-art technology and additional Bloomberg terminals. In 2018 the University completed construction of Bethany Hall adjacent to Farinella Gate, which serves as a welcome center, event space, and home of the admissions office. Muscarelle Hall (formerly Stafford Hall) was updated with larger, state-of-the-art classrooms, accessibility features, and a new façade. The next major project will be the creation of a new athletics practice facility as an extension of the Richie Regan Recreation and Athletic Center.

“We are forever grateful for this overwhelmingly generous gift, and for the many contributions to our ongoing efforts to enhance our campus infrastructure,” said Jon Paparsenos, Vice President for University Advancement. “New and updated facilities enable us to provide a welcoming, productive, and rewarding college experience for our students, which is what Seton Hall is all about.”

One of the country’s leading Catholic universities, Seton Hall has been showing the world what great minds can do since 1856. Home to nearly 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students and offering more than 90 rigorous academic programs, Seton Hall’s academic excellence has been singled out for distinction by The Princeton Review, U.S. News & World Report and Bloomberg Businessweek.

Seton Hall embraces students of all religions and prepares them to be exemplary servant leaders and global citizens. In recent years, the University has achieved extraordinary success. Since 2009, it has seen record-breaking undergraduate enrollment growth and an impressive 110-point increase in the average SAT scores of incoming freshmen. In the past decade, Seton Hall students and alumni have received more than 30 Fulbright Scholarships as well as other prestigious academic honors, including Boren Awards, Pickering Fellowships, Udall Scholarships and a Rhodes Scholarship. The University is also proud to be among the most diverse national Catholic universities in the country.

A new independent economic analysis of the University found that Seton Hall provides a significant impact on New Jersey's economy, totaling over $1.6 billion annually and creating and sustaining nearly 10,000 jobs. In recent years, the University has invested more than $165 million in new campus buildings and renovations. The University’s beautiful main campus in suburban South Orange, N.J. is only 14 miles from New York City — offering students a wealth of employment, internship, cultural and entertainment opportunities. Seton Hall’s nationally recognized School of Law is located prominently in downtown Newark. The University’s Interprofessional Health Sciences (IHS) campus in Clifton and Nutley, N.J. opened in the summer of 2018. The IHS campus houses Seton Hall’s College of Nursing, its School of Health and Medical Sciences as well as Hackensack Meridian Health’s Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine.