NEWARK , October 13, 1999 - New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) students should find it a lot easier to visit the university's many specialized student services, thanks to a newly renovated building that houses all these services under one roof.

      The services were previously located in several buildings throughout the campus.

      The 5-story building, Campbell Hall, was officially opened by NJIT President Saul K. Fenster and other college officials at a ribbon cutting ceremony at 3:30 p.m. today.

      The renovated structure will house the offices of the Dean of Student Services, which provides counsel and other help to over 5,000 students each year; the Freshman Studies Department, which assists 700 students a year and the Educational Opportunity Program, which helps 500 students obtain financial and other assistance annually.

      Campbell Hall will also house Career Development Services, which assists over 6,500 students through its various services, consisting of cooperative education, student employment and community and public service.

      In addition, the renovated structure will be home to the Pre-College Consortium, which annually provides college level classes and programs to about 500 high school students gifted in science and math.

      Other programs to be housed at the building include Student Support Services, which provides financial support and other assistance to 250 students annually from low-income families who are first generation college students. The program also aids students with disabilities.

      The new Student Services Center will also have rooms available for meetings on an appointment basis. In addition, the building will contain administrative offices.

      The renovated structure had previously housed part of NJIT's Department of Civil Engineering and School of Architecture. These have been relocated to buildings housing those departments. A strength and materials laboratory and a classroom remain.

      NJIT is a public research university enrolling nearly 8,200 bachelor's, master's and doctoral students in 76 degree programs through its five colleges: Newark College of Engineering, School of Architecture, College of Science and Liberal Arts, the School of Management and the Albert Dorman Honors College. Research initiatives include manufacturing, microelectronics, multimedia, transportation, computer science, solar astrophysics, environmental engineering and science, and architecture and building science.

      Yahoo! Internet Life magazine recently ranked NJIT the "most wired" public university in the nation, and has ranked it one of the top ten "most wired" campuses among both public and private universities for three consecutive years. In addition, U.S. News and World Report's 1999 Annual Guide to America's Best Colleges ranked NJIT among the nation's top universities, and Money magazine's Best College Buys 1998 rated NJIT as the sixth best value among U.S. science and technology schools and among the top 100 overall.