The public is invited to Wednesday’s 3 p.m. ribbon-cutting opening of Georgia Southern University’s Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center.

The 95,000-square-foot facility built on the southwest side of the intersection of Lanier Drive and Veterans Memorial Parkway – the Highway 301 bypass – will serve as a hub for student, athletic and community events in Statesboro. 

Also, guided tours of Convocation Center will be offered to the public from 1:45 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., prior to the ceremony.

According to a release from Georgia Southern, everyone planning to take a guided tour or attend the opening ceremony Wednesday, are asked to park at Paulson Stadium. A shuttle service will run continuously from the stadium to the Convocation Center beginning at 1:30 p.m. until the event concludes.

Construction began on the $64.4 million, two-story complex in early 2023 and was just completed. The center will be the home of the men's and women's basketball programs and includes spaces for coaches’ offices, locker rooms, strength and conditioning and several other areas. The arena will have a basketball seating capacity of more than 5,500, a 50% increase over Hanner Fieldhouse.

The Center also provides approximately 8,000 square feet of new space for a Waters College of Health Professions sports psychology lab, a satellite research lab, faculty offices, a conference room and classrooms.

The center is named in honor of the late Senator Jack Hill and his wife of 46 years, Ruth Ann Hill. Both are Georgia Southern graduates. Hill was the longest-tenured Georgia senator when he died in April 2020. He was a senator for 30 years and was instrumental in helping the university expand its programs and build several new state-of-the-art facilities, including the Engineering and Research Building, which opened for classes in January 2021.

Ruth Ann Hill focused her life on public education and retired as principal of Reidsville Elementary School. She was a triple Eagle, earning degrees from Georgia Southern in 1973, 1990 and 1991.

Lance Hill, son of Jack and Ruth, will represent the Hill family at the ribbon cutting.

Also, Wednesday’s celebration will feature the Georgia Southern University cheerleaders, pep band and GUS the Eagle. A limited number of commemorative challenge coins will be available to attendees on a first-come, first-served basis.