Emma Willard School to Install New Copper Dome

TROY, NY (12/02/2011)(readMedia)-- Emma Willard School (Emma), one of the nation's leading college preparatory boarding and day schools for young women, will install a new copper dome on its historical Kellas Tower on Monday, December 5, 2011.

The dome replaces the original that has been in place since 1928. The new dome contains the original spire. The dome is made from red copper that will eventually gain a green patina due to oxidation (a process which takes years), but for now, the golden-red dome will be a beacon atop Mount Ida.

The Emma campus is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places and features Tudor-Gothic construction. The new dome will overlook the carefully laid stones and hand-carved gargoyles on Kellas in the middle of campus.

"We've had nearly 200 years of Emma Girls through these gates," says Trudy Hall, head of Emma Willard School. "And we want to have 200 more years of ensuring this place makes your jaw drop when you come to campus."

The placement of the dome onto Kellas Tower will occur during the 9:30 – 11:30 a.m. timeframe. Wind is a variable, due to the size of the crane required to lift the dome.

About Emma Willard School

As the oldest non-denominational girls' school in the country, Emma Willard School has been empowering girls since 1814. Pioneering educator Emma Hart Willard founded the first school in the country to provide girls the same educational opportunities given to boys. Emma Willard School will celebrate its bicentennial in 2014.