August 11, 2009

Contact:
Liz Babiarz, 404-413-1356
University Relations

GSU cuts ribbon on first freshman dorm and campus dining hall

ATLANTA— Georgia State University will cut the ribbon on a brand new, 87,000-square-foot residence hall exclusively for freshmen on Wednesday (August 12) at 3 p.m.  The event will take place at the main entrance to the facility at the corner of Piedmont and Edgewood avenues. 

The six-floor Freshman Hall has roughly 107 suite-style rooms for first-year students and a dining hall on the ground floor available to the entire GSU community.  The facility is a milestone for Georgia State and a sign that the once commuter school is morphing into a traditional university.

Wednesday’s ribbon cutting ceremony will feature comments by Georgia State University President Mark P. Becker, Vice President of Student Affairs Douglass Covey and GSU students. A tour of the suites will follow. Guests will also have an opportunity to sample food and experience the dining hall.

On Aug. 13-14, first-year students will begin moving into the Freshman Hall and the dining facility will be open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. The dining hall assumes its normal operating hours on Aug. 17, providing continual service from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The $15.7 million Freshman Hall will add 325 beds to the growing university’s housing base, which now totals approximately 3,000 beds.

Students living in the Freshmen Hall will enjoy suite-style floor plans. Three undergraduates will live in each suite with a conjoining bathroom to share.  Rooms feature lofted beds, a desk and chair, dresser, lockable closet, and cable and Internet connections.  Each floor has an open community lounge with a 50-inch wide screen television and wireless Internet access.

First-year students in the hall will participate in the “Freshman Experience Program,” a lifestyle program that focuses on social and academic success.  It will help freshmen establish a network of faculty and staff partners, get tutoring help when needed, become involved in leadership opportunities and make upper-class friends through resident assistants.

“The expectation of participants is to take part in the whole first year experience and not take a spectator seat,” said Robert Morton, associate director of housing at Georgia State.

The dining hall will offer an “all you care to eat” plan. It will serve freshly prepared food at several stations including: “The Garden Patch,” a salad and soup bar; “Almost Home,” home style  cooking; “The 1913 Bistro,” chef selected meals;  “Fired Up Grille,” hot and cold sandwiches; “Passports,” international cuisine; “Baker’s Oven,” a bakery featuring Belgium waffle station, breads and desserts.

The Department of Auxiliary and Support Services worked with Christine Rosenbloom, a Georgia State registered dietitian, to develop a healthy menu. A label system will also be in place to point students to low fat, vegetarian, quality carbohydrates, lean protein and other healthful choices.  For more information on Panther Dining, visit http://www.gsu.edu/pantherdining

“The new dining hall presents a wonderful opportunity for students to enrich their university experience by providing them a place to meet and connect with other students on campus,” said Wayne E. Reed, assistant vice president for Auxiliary and Support Services.

For more information on the Freshman Hall visit: http://www.gsu.edu/housing/freshman_hall.html