By Laura Martinez Massie

Mason and the GTE Corporation are set to break ground on a new 300-seat auditorium on Wednesday, April 15, at 3 p.m. at the Prince William Campus. Weather permitting, the ground-breaking ceremony will be held outside Academic I, the first classroom building on the new campus, which opened in August 1997. A reception in the campus cafeteria immediately follows the ceremony.

The university received authorization to construct the auditorium and $750,000 during the 1997 session of the Virginia General Assembly, with the understanding that the university would provide the remaining funds for construction from private sources. After GTE gave $350,000 to the university to help construct the facility as well as install a comprehensive technology infrastructure, the Board of Visitors approved naming the auditorium, an addition to Academic I, after the corporation. Construction is expected to be completed in fall 1998.

"We are extremely grateful for the generosity of GTE," says President Alan G. Merten. "Not only does it enable us to complete work on what will be an important part of our Prince William Campus, but it signifies the beginning of what we envision being a long-term and most positive partnership between GTE Corporation and George Mason University."

The auditorium will feature a back-lit screen, a three-gun projection system, an LCD projector, large-screen video monitors, a video switching/control unit, computers, and connecting hardware and systems necessary to integrate the facility into Mason's campuswide telecommunications network.

"The new GTE auditorium will have the kind of technology to make it a first-class functioning facility," says Merten. "We're confident this technology, along with the break-out rooms planned for the auditorium and the well-designed traffic pattern that will allow visitors ease of access to the cafeteria and other meeting rooms in Academic I, will make the auditorium a community landmark in the Prince William region."

"GTE is delighted to partner with George Mason University to help make this state-of-the-art auditorium available--not only for the Mason community, but for the entire Prince William area," says Jim Diaz, president of GTE in Virginia. "GTE recognizes that corporate investments of this type will produce dividends well into the next millennium. We hope our investment serves as an incentive for other business partners in the region to support the fine work George Mason is beginning at the Prince William Campus."