Green Hall Revival marks start of $6 million restoration project

MIND THE DEAN: Provost M. Beverly Swan as Dean Helen Peck admonishes the students of then-Rhode Island State College, played by Betsy Eyring, Adam Crowe, Jeff Smith, and Heidi Beckmann during Ten Minutes through Time.

Blanche Murray '41, Bill Woodward Hon. '94 and his wife Grace.

Provost M. Beverly Swan as Dean Helen Peck.

Green Hall Revival marks start of $6 million restoration project

With students dressed in period costumes, top tunes from the '30s and '40s filling the air, and memorabilia from the days of Rhode Island State College, the University of Rhode Island launched the $6 million restoration of Green Hall on Thursday, May 31.

The event officially concluded "The Campaign for Green Hall: Restoring the Heart of the Campus," the private fund drive that raised $1 million of the total $6 million project cost. The remaining funds are coming from state general obligation bonds and the Rhode Island Capital Fund.

In addition to remarks made by President Robert L. Carothers, Vice President for University Advancement Robert M. Beagle, and Green Hall Campaign Chair Henry Nardone, the Revival featured Provost M. Beverly Swan and theatre students performing a short skit called "Ten Minutes through Time." Directed by Theatre Dept. Chair Paula McGlasson, and written by Jhodi Redlich of the URI Department of Communications/News Bureau, the production brought the audience back to the campus life of the mid-to-late '30s. Swan served as narrator for the production, but it was her brief role as Helen Peck, dean of women at the then Rhode Island State College, that brought with it the most memorable and fond howls of laughter.

Many of the individuals who attended the event are graduates from the 1930s through the 1950s who remember a grand building that housed the library, bookstore, administrative officers and all student services.

"Like the structure itself, this grand event honors the alumni who laid the foundation for this great University, and who spent countless hours studying in Green Hall," said Beagle. "We also pay tribute to those volunteers and supporters who have given so generously of their time and resources.

"We are particularly indebted to Henry Nardone for his leadership in the campaign and his initiative in getting the building restored," Beagle said.

"The campaign went quite well, particularly when you consider that there were other fund-raising projects being conducted concurrently," Nardone said. Henry and his wife, Mary Frances "Boots" Nardone, pledged $25,000 when Henry was named to chair the fund drive.

"The success of the campaign is a credit to the alumni who feel so strongly about the building. Green Hall was the heart of the campus for students in the '40s and '50s - you could register there, get your grades, pay your fees, buy your books, see the president and the deans, study in the great room of the library, and even arrange a date for the Junior Prom in the stacks of the library. It was and once again will be the logo building of the University."

By Dave Lavallee

Mary Frances "Boots" Nardone laughs after Dean Helen Peck singled her out for not paying attention during the Dean's speech to the girls of Rhode Island State College.

Student actors Jeff Smith, Heidi Beckmann, Adam Crowe, and Betsy Eyring read some 1934 newspaper headlines.

Dept. of Communications student workers and URI seniors, Jennifer Smith, Jess Palumbo, and Mia Pasquerella pose as students from the 1930's for the ceremony.

William Ferrante '49, Fred Jackson Hon. '32, and David Wilks '43 laugh at the antics of Dean Helen Peck, played by Provost M. Beverly Swan.

Provost M. Beverly Swan '63, Henry J. Nardone '43 and Hon. '93, and Robert Beagle, vice president for University Advancement.

FAMILY: Roger Lavallee '48 and his wife, Irene, get a hand with from their son, Dave '80, who works in the Dept. of Communictions/News Bureau and dressed in costume for the event. Dave unrolls the map that was reproduced from Lavallee's 1936-37 RISC Freshman Bible as Ken Munroe '43 looks on.