What: The Seton Hill University Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Greensburg, Pa. will celebrate the beginning of construction with an event titled “Act I: Let the Construction Begin.” The event will include an update on the University Center project and performances by Seton Hill students and special guests.

When: Tuesday, August 28, 2007 at 11 a.m. The event program will conclude at 11:40, with lunch to follow.

Where: The University Center for the Performing Arts construction site in downtown Greensburg, Pa. on Harrison Avenue.

Who: Representatives from Greensburg businesses, the City of Greensburg, Seton Hill University, local and regional foundations, corporations, and state and regional government; Seton Hill University students, faculty and staff, trustees, alumni, and Sisters of Charity; special guests.

All members of the media are invited to attend this event.

Background: The University Center for the Performing Arts, designed by MacLachlan Cornelius & Filoni Architects, Inc., will bring two of Seton Hill’s most vibrant programs – theatre and music – into the heart of the city of Greensburg. The Center will also serve as the completing piece of Greensburg’s Cultural District, with the Westmoreland Museum of American Art at one corner and Seton Hill University at the other, linked by the historic Palace Theatre, the restored Greensburg Train Station, cafes, restaurants and bookstores. Once completed, the 73,000 square foot center will include a flexible theatre, music hall, rehearsal spaces, set and costume design rooms, classrooms, and faculty offices for Seton Hill’s programs in music and theatre. The University Center project is the result of a collaboration among the City of Greensburg, the Redevelopment Authority of Westmoreland County, the Greensburg Salem School District, local legislators, and the Westmoreland Cultural Trust. As of today, the University Center for the Performing Arts Campaign, chaired by Michele and Tom Ridge and Anne and Jack Robertshaw, has achieved almost $19 million toward its projected $21 million goal. Construction will begin by the end of August 2007, with a projected completion date of spring 2009.

Seton Hill University, founded by the Sisters of Charity, is a coeducational Catholic liberal arts university in Greensburg, Pa. Chartered in 1918, Seton Hill offers more than 30 undergraduate programs and nine graduate programs, including an MBA. Seton Hill brings the world to its students through its distinguished lecturers and nationally and internationally renowned centers. Recognized three times by Entrepreneur magazine as one of the nation’s Top 100 Entrepreneurial Universities, Seton Hill has also been named a Best Baccalaureate College by U.S. News & World Report, one of the Best in the Northeast by The Princeton Review, and one of Pennsylvania’s Top 100 Businesses by Pennsylvania Business Central. In addition, Seton Hill has been named a University of Distinction by Colleges of Distinction, an organization founded by a group of concerned parents, educators and admissions professionals. For more information on Seton Hill please visit www.setonhill.edu or call 1-800-826-6234.

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Media Contact: Becca Baker, Associate Director of Media Relations
724-830-1069 /724-689-3599 (cell) / bbaker@setonhill.edu