President's Blog: From the Heart

By Eric F. Spina

Although the Adèle Center still needed some finishing touches when I toured it a few weeks ago, it’s not going to take long for the new kid on the block to gain respect as it welcomes its first student residents this week.

Gazing through one of the spacious apartment’s windows at an expansive view of campus, I knew immediately that this will become a favorite place to live. It’s another crown jewel in our learning-living environment.

Located on Lowes Street in the south student neighborhood, tucked between ArtStreet and Campus South and surrounded by streets lined with student houses, this four-story townhouse-style apartment building features 24 apartments for 96 students, several gathering spots, and quiet study spaces on its upper floors. The ground-floor multipurpose areas will provide offices and space for student services, a campus minister, meetings, programs, and worship.

A visitor immediately notices an abundance of natural light flooding the apartments, offices, and wide corridors. Each residential floor is painted in cheerful colors — bright blue, orange, and yellow. The 162 solar cells on the south side of the building will initially deliver more than a quarter of the LEED-certified building’s energy during the academic year and, during the summers, surplus power through the campus grid to other buildings.

This is not your mother’s residence hall — or anything vaguely similar to anywhere I lived during my college days. For openers, each four-person apartment includes two bathrooms on top of such amenities as a dishwasher, microwave, washer and dryer. Throw in extra touches like porcelain tile and dimmer lights. And did I mention the big windows?

The Adèle Center replaces the McGinnis Center, a one-story former schoolhouse that the University transformed into a multi-purpose center in the 1980s through a gift from Marie-Louise McGinnis, an honorary trustee, in memory of her husband Edward. A prominent plaque in the building honors that history and generosity, and Mrs. McGinnis will be in attendance at its dedication in the fall. Alumni will appreciate that the popular Sunday night Mass returns, only a bit earlier at 7 p.m., at the request of students.

A tapestry of Blessed Adèle de Batz de Trenquelléon, hanging outside the campus ministry office in the building, will remind all who stroll down the halls that they are walking in the footsteps of a spiritual giant who modeled faith, community, service, and inclusivity.

The building’s new name pays special tribute to the founder of the Daughters of Mary Immaculate, or the Marianist sisters, who was beatified in her hometown of Agen, France, this summer with a University of Dayton contingent sharing in the celebration. I’m pleased that we can mark that significant moment in Marianist history in this spectacular new facility.

Welcome to the neighborhood, Adèle! You fit in perfectly.