Seton Hill names new dorm after Sisters of Charity

Students arriving at Seton Hill University for fall classes will find a new residence hall named for the religious order that founded the institution.

The Sisters of Charity Residence Hall, opening in August, will boost the Greensburg university’s on-campus housing from 800 to 945 beds. The three-story building, which features block-and-plank construction and a partial brick veneer, offers suites for upperclass students.

Responding to a high demand for housing in seven existing residence halls, the university in past years has leased off-campus dwellings for students, including space in the local YMCA.

With an eighth hall in place, the university will no longer need to provide off-campus accommodations, but some students likely will continue to rent their own housing in the community, said Jennifer Reeger, Seton Hill’s director of communications and media relations.

Located in the northwestern corner of the campus, the new $11 million residence hall is situated near three others — Brownlee, Farrell and DeChantal — to create a common quad area. DeChantal, which opened in 2005, was the last residence hall added to the campus.

University President Mary C. Finger on Friday announced the name of the new hall.

“The Sisters of Charity Residence Hall celebrates the legacy, mission and charism of the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill now and into the future,” she said.

The Sisters of Charity founded the educational institution in 1918.

A blessing and dedication ceremony for the new hall is planned for Sept. 11, as part of the university’s Opening Liturgy celebration. Participants will include Bishop Edward Malesic of the Diocese of Greensburg; Sr. Catherine Meinert, provincial superior of the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill; and university trustees.

“We are humbled that today’s university leadership would acknowledge, in such a powerful way, the important legacy of the Sisters of Charity by naming a new residence hall in honor of the founding sisters and all those who have affected the lives of the thousands of young scholars who have graduated and bear the name Setonian,” said Meinert.

There were 1,564 full-time undergraduate students enrolled at Seton Hill last fall. Including graduate and non-traditional students, total enrollment is at about 2,200.

Some Seton Hill students, including participants in fall athletics, will move in to campus housing as early as Aug. 11. Most will arrive Aug. 23-25, with classes beginning on Aug. 26.