Alumni, community celebrate completion of new facilities
Ranger Hall, home of the Harrington School, had a Grand Opening ceremony on Friday, Oct. 21 after seven years of renovations. PHOTO CREDIT: Eddie Melfi | Staff Photographer
On Friday, the University of Rhode Island community came together to celebrate the Grand Opening of Ranger Hall.
Ranger Hall, which has been under renovation since 2015, is the home of the Harrington School of Communication and Media. While renovations on the first floor were completed in 2019, the second, third and fourth floors were completed just in time for the start of this semester.
There was both a ribbon-cutting ceremony on the Quad and self-guided tours of Ranger Hall after. According to Ammina Kothari, the director of the Harrington School, around 220 visitors, including students, faculty, staff and community members, attended the events.
“We also had community members from Rhode Island as well as some who came, some alumni who came as far from Massachusetts as well,” Kothari said.
The ceremony included speeches from Kothari, Jen Riley, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, President Marc Parlange, Richard Harrington, the namesake of the Harrington School, CNN Chief National Correspondent John King and third-year Communications student Katie Riedy, who was one of the initial recipients of the Obama-Chesky Voyager Scholarship for Public Service.
After the welcoming address, visitors were welcome to tour Ranger Hall and explore the different spaces offered to students. Through the four fully renovated floors, visitors could interact with Harrington students and gain more knowledge about the new spaces, including the building’s computer labs, video editing suites, film recording suites and active learning classrooms.
“I think those were really a social event,” Kothari said. “It was more than looking at innovative classrooms and the technology that we have now available for the students. It was a way to reconnect with the faculty to meet other classmates.”
This event took months to plan, according to Kothari. Preparations were initiated in the spring and required coordination from Harrington School members as well as the Harrington Advisory Council.
“It was a team effort,” she said. “I think it was evident in how everything was set up, but also a transition from the Quad to the building, as well as the tours, the T-shirts, we put a lot of thought behind it.”
John King, an alum of the University and the journalism program, was invited back to emcee the event and meet with students. Vlad Duthiers, a correspondent for CBS News and a member of the Harrington Executive Advisory Board, was also present at Thursday’s annual Amanpour Lecture, moderating the question and answer portion. According to Kothari, both alumni were in the area and available for the event.
The updates in Ranger’s classrooms and teaching spaces will help students gain knowledge that will be useful in professional settings, according to Kothari.
“I am looking forward to the new space, particularly the new classrooms and the creative spaces is to see what my students and faculty will do with them,” she said. “In some ways, they are blank canvases, the technology’s there, but what can be done with it.”
Daisy Gates, a third-year communications and public relations major and Harrington Brand Ambassador, shared her excitement for the new space with Kothari.
“I was really excited to see everything come together,” Gates said. “Whenever I’m in the building, there’s always people moving camera equipment or, you know, sitting in between classes. So students really take advantage already.”
Moving forward there are plans to continue renovating and improving the space, according to Kothari. The basement-level storage rooms could be turned into “student-centered spaces.” She wants Ranger to be a place for students to learn and call home.
“This is the home of the Harrington School, but the reason it’s the home is because of the students,” Kothari said. “I want the students to take ownership of the space and make it their own.”
Kothari said she is looking for feedback and suggestions for the future of The Harrington School and Ranger Hall.