HIGH POINT, N.C., Oct. 26, 2009 – High Point University faculty, staff, alumni, university trustees, friends and invited guests celebrated the grand opening of the University Center on Oct. 23 with a special ribbon cutting ceremony, open house and reception.

The new $70 million, 277,000-square-foot facility serves as a one-stop shop, including multiple dining venues, a cinema house and a convenience store. The UC houses 530 students, including double- and single-occupancy arrangements.

The facility also houses the Research & Learning Commons. The area is used as a satellite library and features study space, as well as research assistance and a Ready Reference Collection. Staff members are available to assist students 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Dining venues in the building include The Point Sports Restaurant, an interactive sports entertainment restaurant and gaming center; The Great Day Bakery, which offers fresh-baked breads, sandwiches, fresh salads and more; and 1924 Prime Steakhouse, which offers filet mignon, New York strip, fresh fish, poultry and more, and serves an educational purpose, teaching proper fine-dining etiquette.

Students have a variety of entertainment in the center as well, including a state-of-the-art gaming center, which includes Wii™ stations, rooms filled with soft seating, including sofas and chairs, and 52-inch TVs connected to sports games on TV, as well as Wii™, Xbox® and PlayStation®. The area also includes Skee-ball machines, NASCAR® simulators, basketball games, pool tables, air hockey tables and other arcade games. A 200-seat theatre, the Extraordinaire Cinema, can be utilized for academic sessions, such as faculty lectures and special academic programs, as well as Student Life activities.

At High Point University, every student receives an extraordinary education in a fun environment with caring people. HPU, located in the Piedmont Triad region of North Carolina, is a liberal arts institution with 3,700 undergraduate and graduate students from 50 countries and 44 states at campuses in High Point and Winston-Salem. It is ranked by US News and World Report No. 5 among comprehensive universities in the South and No. 1 in its category among up-and-coming schools. Forbes.com ranks HPU in the top 6 percent among "America's Best Colleges." HPU was included in The Chronicle of Higher Education's "Great Colleges to Work For" 2009 listings. The university offers 68 undergraduate majors, 40 undergraduate minors and seven graduate degree programs. It is accredited by the Commission of Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, and is a member of the NCAA, Division I and the Big South Conference. Visit High Point University on the Web at www.highpoint.edu.