The Academy of Notre Dame de Namur in Villanova celebrated the opening of its new 30,000-square-foot Riley Center for STEM Education with a dedication, blessing, and ribbon-cutting ceremony last Friday.

The state-of-the-art facility incorporates the latest technology and teaching/learning environments for study of the STEM disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

“The Academy of Notre Dame de Namur has been celebrating milestones since 1856,” said Dr. Judith A. Dwyer, Notre Dame’s President. “We proudly stand in the legacy of Saint Julie, as well as the hallmarks of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur and their pioneering leadership within the Catholic faith community. The Riley Center continues that legacy as we recognize the ability of the STEM disciplines to heal and enhance the quality of life throughout the world.”

The Riley Center for STEM Education forms the cornerstone of Notre Dame’s five-year strategic vision to create a state-of-the-art, 21st-century learning environment on the Academy’s 19th-century Villanova estate.

The Center includes technology-enabled active learning (TEAL) environments that include eight science laboratories, three lab prep rooms, eight mathematics classrooms, a design thinking and entrepreneurship classroom, and labs dedicated to design and innovation, robotics, and coding.

George Van Kula, Chair of Notre Dame’s Board of Trustees, offered his gratitude to school administrators, faculty, members of the Academy’s STEM Strategic Council, leaders of the Academy’s capital campaign, trustees, and donors.

“The commitment that each of you have demonstrated is truly inspirational and will leave a lasting mark on the Academy of Notre Dame and the women who pass through its halls,” he said.