Southeastern NEWS

                                                       Southeastern Louisiana University
                                           Public Information Office
                                           publicinfo@selu.edu
                                           SLU 880, Hammond, LA 70402
                                           985-549-2341/fax 985-549-2061
    Date: 03/04/02
      Contact:                           Angey Saucier

SOUTHEASTERN DEDICATES STUDENT ACTIVITY CENTER
     HAMMOND   Southeastern Louisiana University's Student Activity Center will be
dedicated to the memory of the late Claude B. Pennington Jr. at ceremonies on Wednesday,
March 6 at 2 p.m. 
     Welcoming remarks will be delivered by Brad O'Hara, vice president for Student Affairs;
Sally Clausen, president of the University of Louisiana System; and Kalen Miller, Student
Government Association president. Jim McHodgkins, assistant dean for Student Development,
will discuss the purpose of the center; and Southeatern President Randy Moffett will provide a
tribute to Claude B. Pennington Jr.
     Pennington, the only son of Louisiana independent oil operator Claude "Doc"
Pennington, was a 1949 Southeastern graduate. A member of the Pennington Oil Company, he
was killed in a drilling accident in an oil field near Jackson, La. He was survived by his wife,
Peggy, and three children, Claude III, Daryl and Paula.
      In 1982, the  Irene W. and C.B. Pennington Foundation was established in 1982 to
provide philanthropic support for qualifying charitable, religious and governmental
organizations.  The family foundation funded Southeastern's Claude B. Pennington Jr., Endowed
Professorship in Special Education in 1999. The university is honoring the memory of Claude B.
Pennington Jr. for additional contributions to Southeastern made in his memory by the
foundation.
     The Claude B. Pennington Jr. Student Activity Center opened in June 2001 and was
largely funded by student fees. The facility includes a state-of-the-art cardio-theater, 11,000
square foot fitness area, two racquetball courts, two multi-purpose/aerobic rooms, four full-court
basketball/volleyball courts, six badminton courts, an indoor walking/jogging track, a large
meeting room with a demonstration kitchen, and a "Wellness Suite." 
                             -SLU-
Press release available online at www.selu.edu/NewsEvents/PublicInfoOffice/newsp02.html