KU set to begin construction on Dennis E. Rieger Scholarship Hall

A groundbreaking ceremony April 17 will mark the beginning of construction on a new scholarship hall at 1323 Ohio Street. The Dennis E. Rieger Scholarship Hall will be named in memory of a KU alum who died of diabetes at the age of 47. Family members Roger and Annette Rieger, also KU alumni, pledged $3 million to fund the hall’s construction. Contributed

KU will pay tribute to a “real Jayhawk” when it breaks ground on construction of the Dennis E. Rieger Scholarship Hall April 17.

Roger and Annette Rieger, both KU alumni, will join KU Chancellor Robert Hemenway, KU Endowment Association President Dale Seuferling and KU Student Housing Director Ken Stoner for a 9:30 a.m. ceremony at the site, 1323 Ohio St. In the case of inclement weather, the ceremony will be moved inside to Margaret Amini Scholarship Hall, 1312 Louisiana.

The Riegers pledged $3 million to KU Endowment for the hall, which is scheduled to be open in the fall of 2005. It will be named for the late Dennis E. Rieger, a KU alumnus who died of diabetes at the age of 47.

“He was a real Jayhawk, through and through,” said Roger Rieger. “I think he would be proud to be associated with a scholarship hall. This gift was a way for us to leave something here that’s a lasting memorial to him.”

Dennis E. Rieger Scholarship Hall will house 50 women in a mix of traditional rooms and suites divided between two wings. The common areas will include a courtyard, living room, dining area, kitchen and recreational room.

Lawrence-based Treanor Architects designed the structure, incorporating characteristics consistent with a Queen Anne design that will complement other homes in the neighborhood.

The design process included input from a university building committee and a community advisory committee composed of representatives of the Lawrence Historic Resource Commission, the Lawrence Preservation Alliance, the Oread Neighborhood Association and the Campus Historic Preservation Board.

Dennis E. Rieger Scholarship Hall will be the 11th scholarship hall at KU, which is one of few universities nationwide to have a cooperative housing system on or near campus. Like all residence halls at KU, they receive no state support for operation. Scholarship hall residents pay about $1,400 less per year than students living in residence halls. In exchange, they agree to about six hours a week of household and cooking responsibilities.