DOVER, Del. – Delaware State University will celebrate the 16-year presidential tenure of the late Dr. William B. DeLauder by formally renaming campus theatre after him in a ceremony at 10 a.m. Tuesday, May 9 in the Education and Humanities Theatre.

During the ceremony – which will be open to the public – the primary site on campus for the performing arts will be officially renamed “The Dr. William B. DeLauder Education and Humanities Theatre.”

Family members of Dr. DeLauder will attend the ceremony, as well as elected officials, including U.S. Sen. Tom Carper. There will also be administrators, staff and faculty who served under Dr. DeLauder – the eighth president in the history of the institution who passed away on May 21, 1919.

Dr. DeLauder served as the President of the institution from 1987 until his retirement in 2003. It was under the leadership of Dr. DeLauder that a successful case was made for the elevation of then-Delaware State College, resulting in the 1993 state law enactment that changed the institution’s name to Delaware State University.

Among Dr. DeLauder’s numerous accomplishments and contributions are the establishment of the Aviation Program, University Police Department, the launching and successful completion of the institution’s first $10 million capital campaign, as well as the expansion of the University’s academic and physical infrastructure, as well as many other achievements. The University’s infrastructure growth during his tenure paralleled its enrollment growth of that period which increased from 2,389 in 1987 to 3,367 students in 2002.