BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The University at Buffalo will hold a dedication ceremony on Thursday, May 10, for Barbara and Jack Davis Hall, a $75 million School of Engineering and Applied Sciences building on the North Campus.

The event starts at 10 a.m. but media are invited to tour the facility at 9 a.m. This will include a look at the rooftop garden, laboratories, classrooms and other areas that will support UB's nationally ranked engineering school.

Davis Hall is a state-of-the-art, 130,000-square-foot facility that is designed "gold" under the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system. It is a part of the UB 2020 strategic plan to transform UB into a premier public research institution and improve facilities for UB students and faculty.

Beginning with the opening of Greiner Residence Hall last August and continuing through this September, UB will have opened four major new buildings across its three campuses, including the Clinical and Translational Research Center opening soon in the new UB-Kaleida Health medical research building on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus.

In dollar amounts, this translates to more than $300 million in construction during this one-year span alone.

Speakers at the dedication ceremony for Barbara and Jack Davis Hall will include:

* Jack Davis, UB engineering alumnus and founder of I Squared R Element Co., Akron. The building is named for Davis and his wife, Barbara, in recognition of their lifetime philanthropic contributions to UB.

* Jeremy M. Jacobs, UB Council Chairman.

* UB President Satish K. Tripathi.

* George Maziarz, New York State Senator, 62nd District.

* Robin Schimminger, New York State Assemblyman, 140th District.

For directions to Davis Hall, visit http://www.buffalo.edu/directions. For photos of Davis Hall, visit http://ubphoto.smugmug.com.