Purdue News
Purdue News
Registration and activities information will be available at Gala Week headquarters in Room 118, Purdue Memorial Union. The Gala Week office will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday, April 25 and 26. For registration and ticket information, call the headquarters office at (765) 494-5175.
The 1997 class parade and memorial service at John Purdue's grave on Saturday, April 26, will include the unveiling of a plaque commemorating the Class of 1946 for its part in redesigning the grave site. Tradition is that the oldest living alumnus present leads the parade from the Memorial Union to the grave on Memorial Mall. Reunion classes will assemble between 10:30 and 10:45 a.m..
Immediately following the memorial service, at 11:30 a.m., Purdue will dedicate its newest green space, Academy Park, in honor of all Purdue faculty. It will be used as an outdoor teaching arena and leisure area. Academy Park is a reference to The Academy, a public garden established by Plato in 387 B.C. There, Greek philosophers such as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle imparted their wisdom. The new park is just north of Stewart Center and the Memorial Union. Construction began in 1995.
Later Saturday -- about 2:30 p.m. --it will be time to start the 50-mile Grand Prix kart race. The top two finishers from last year, Dustin Smith and Kyle Smith, sophomores from Frankfort , are expected to participate again this year. Indy Racing League owner and driver Lyn St. James will be the grand marshal for the Grand Prix parade. Other activities will include an alumni race starting about 1:20 p.m., and the Grand Prix carnival, featuring Poor Jack's Amusements, April 23-26. Race-day events will require admission to the Grand Prix track north of Ross-Ade Stadium. Tickets are $5 in advance and $6 at the gate. For more information, contact the Purdue Grand Prix Foundation, (765) 494-2708.
The University Bands Department is using the weekend to launch its first capital campaign. "A Song Anew: Tuning Up for the Future" is a three-year campaign to raise money for instruments, student travel, scholarships and music purchases. A luncheon is planned for anyone interested in the future of the bands at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, April 26, on the Elliott Hall of Music stage. Tickets are $12 from the University Bands office at (765) 494-0770 until April 18.
Gala Week visitors will find a new replica gate and commemorative plaques across from Stewart Center near the original 1897 entrance to campus. The gateway markers provide a description of the original gates that stood at Marsteller and State streets and an artist's rendering of the site circa the early 1900s. The gates were removed in the 1950s when Stewart Center was built. No formal dedication is planned for these historical additions to Purdue's campus.
The Visitor Information Center, 504 Northwestern Ave., will provide guided riding tours of campus at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Friday, April 25, and at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 26. Reservations are required; call (765) 494-INFO.
The School of Agriculture, School of Education, Schools of Engineering, School of Liberal Arts and School of Science will honor distinguished alumni with special convocations and banquets on Friday, April 25.
The Alumni Association will sponsor the 2nd annual Gala Week Lecture Series on Saturday, April 26. Check in for all sessions in Room 118, Purdue Memorial Union. Purdue speakers are: James Dworkin, associate dean, School of Management, 2 p.m.; Dr. William Baird, director, Purdue Cancer Center, 2:45 p.m.; and John Hicks, senior vice president emeritus, 3:30 p.m.
Other Gala Week activities:
