In honor of George R . Brown Engineering School dedication set for Wednesday

The George R. Brown School of E n g i n e e r i n g will be dedicated in special ceremonies Wednesday honoring Brown, a Rice alumnus and former Chairman of the Board of Trustees. Alan Chapman, Dean of the newly-established school, will p r e s i d e a t t h e f o r m a l ded ica t ion ceremonies in Hamman Hall at 3:30pm. Lead speakers include Chairman of the Board of Governors Herbert Allen and President Norman Hackerman. That evening, Arthur Fox, P r e s i d e n t of the 70,000member American Society of Civil Engineers, will deliver a m a j o r a d d r e s s a t t h e dedication dinner in the Grand Hall of the Rice Memorial Center. He will speak on "Making Engineering Education Relevant." The school was formed last spring with the separation of the Sc ience -Eng inee r ing Division into two schools, the second of which is the School of Natural Sciences. Former Dean of Science and Engine e r i n g W i l l i a m G o r d o n became the Dean of Natural Sciences and Alan Chapman was selected from the Rice f a c u l t y to be Dean of Engineering when the split became effective July 1. One of the reasons cited in the decision to separate science and engineering was the need for inc reased professionalism in engineering. Other speakers at Wednesday afternoon's ceremonies inc lude J a m e s R. Sims, professor of civil engineering; J. Frank Overton, speaking for the Rice Engineering Alumni Association; Wayne Hale, SA President and spokesman for engineering students; Robert L. Pigford; Ernest F. Gloyna, Dean of Engineering at UTAustin; and Harry E. Bovay, President of the National Society of P ro f e s s iona l Engineers. Brown just recently retired as Chairman of the Board of Brown and Root, a world-wide engineering and construction firm. He is a long-time Rice benefactor, beginning in 1942 when, largely through his e f f o r t s , t h e U n i v e r s i t y acquired almost half the Rincon oil field in Starr County. He became Chairman of the Board of Trustees in 1950, retiring in 1968. During his years as chairman, the University underwent tremendous e x p a n s i o n s in the number of faculty, students, buildings, and programs. He led the University 's $33 Million Campaign which began in 1965 and ended less than three years later more than $10 million above its goal.