On a bright, crisp football Saturday morning, 500 Iowa Staters gathered on the west edge of campus. They came together to honor the end of a decade of dreams and determination and to celebrate the beginning of a new era of excellence in engineering learning.

The dedication ceremony was one of several events celebrating the opening of Howe Hall. The architecturally striking and technologically advanced building is the first of the two-building Engineering Teaching and Research Complex.

The guests of honor on this special day were Helen and Stanley Howe, BSEngr’46, of Muscatine, Iowa. Their $6-million gift in 1996 gave the ETRC a “jump start.” The Howes understood early on what this facility could mean to ISU students and to the people of Iowa.

“The goal has always been to create a more practice-oriented and collaborative approach to engineering education,” said Engineering Dean James Melsa. “We have done that in Howe Hall. We have the high-tech space needed to provide not only a high-quality educational experience for undergraduate and graduate students, but also for engineers throughout their careers. This is a facility dedicated to the idea of engineering being a profession based on a lifetime of learning.”

Stanley Howe is chairman emeritus and a member of the board of directors at HON INDUSTRIES, a manufacturer of office furniture and prefabricated fireplace units. The Howes’ gift is supplemented with an additional $1 million in furniture from HON.

The $61-million complex is the largest capital project ever undertaken by ISU. Funding came from the state of Iowa ($33 million) and non-state sources ($28 million).

“When all is said and done, this building is about students,” said Engineering Student Council President Ben Golding, ConE 4, who spoke on behalf of the engineering student body. “Impossible dreams and impossible missions become possible thanks to alumni like the Howes. We promise to be the best engineers possible.”