PHILADELPHIA -- The hanging of the mezuzah capped the dedication ceremony today for Steinhardt Hall, the new $12 million Hillel home at the University of Pennsylvania.  Michael and Judy Steinhardt, whose generosity made the new building possible, shared the honor with project manager Ed Berkowitz and other significant donors.

Penn President Judith Rodin joined with faculty from Penn's Jewish Studies Program, Penn students and representatives of the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia and Hillel of Greater Philadelphia in thanking the Steindhardts, both Penn alumni, for their generosity.  The 35,000-square-foot building on 39th Street between Walnut Street and Locust Walk on the Penn campus features a two-story, glass-enclosed entrance and recreation area, including a coffee bar.  It has been designed to accommodate the 500-plus students who worship at Friday services, and it includes dining facilities for the several hundred who gather for kosher lunch and dinner daily.  It also contains meeting rooms, administrative space for 27 Jewish student organizations, a graduate-student lounge and a Judaic library and reading room.

The project team consisted of Jacobs/Wyper Architects, The Staubach Company, R.M. Shoemaker, Paul H. Yeomans, The Kachele Group, Barton & Martin, Tigue Lighting and Post and Grossbard Inc.