Weeklong LuddyFest celebrates dedication of Luddy Hall
April 11, 2018 | Kara Williams | Indiana Daily Student
John Shoemaker, the namesake of the Luddy Hall Shoemaker Innovation Center, speaks about innovation and entrepreneurship at an informal discussion during LuddyFest on Tuesday in Luddy Hall. LuddyFest is a week long celebration for the new home of the School of Informatics. Read the original story.
This Friday marks the dedication day for Luddy Hall, a new building for the School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering.
Luddy Hall officially opened for student use in January. The building is the first time IU's School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering will be together in one space.
Leading up to the building's dedication is a weeklong celebration called LuddyFest. The events range from speakers to student contests to art installations.
"The celebration of LuddyFest and the dedication of Luddy Hall represent the culmination of more than six years of devotion, planning and passion for one of the fastest-growing schools at IU," Raj Acharya, dean of the school, said in an IU press release.
LuddyFest kicked off Monday with a student breakfast. On Tuesday at 5:35 p.m., John Shoemaker gave a lecture as part of the Shoemaker Technology Inventor and Entrepreneur Speaker Series.
Wednesday's festivities start at 10:30 a.m. with a presentation by Stanford University Associate Professor Ge Wang. A roundtable of entrepreneurs including Fred Luddy, for whom the building is named, is scheduled to follow at 12:30 p.m.
Next, at 1 p.m., there will be a demonstration of interactive activities from the Intelligent Systems Engineering program.
A student innovation challenge will take place from 3 to 6 p.m Wednesday afternoon. Students and staff will have the chance to display their work at a visualization lab from 5 to 7 p.m. The day will culminate with the presentation of an art installation created for Luddy Hall at 8 p.m.
On Thursday, former senior director of Apple Music and IU alumnus Ian Rogers will be the keynote speaker at 11 a.m. Following that talk, IU informatics professor Bernard Frischer and his students will present work and interactive displays about augmented and virtual reality. The day will conclude with a panel discussion at 4 p.m.
Friday will feature an opportunity to talk with students in The Shoebox, a place for student innovators. The main event Friday will be the building's dedication at 2 p.m. in the Dorsey Learning Hall with a picnic to follow.