A dedication ceremony for the newly renamed Frank P. Urso, M.D. Hall
will be held this Friday at 1:30 p.m. in the hall’s lobby on the
University of Tampa campus.
Formerly known as the Kennedy
Place residence hall, the building is being renamed in honor of Frank
P. Urso, M.D., an Ybor City native, graduate of the UT class of 1957
and retired pathologist, who recently gave the University a $3 million
gift.
“UT changed my life,” Urso said of his gift.
After graduation from UT Urso continued with medical school at the
University of Miami, where he graduated with honors. Urso served as the
director of pathology and clinical laboratories at three major
hospitals, and worked as professor of pathology at Northeastern Ohio
Universities College of Medicine — where he was twice honored as
“Lecturer of the Year.”
Since retiring, Urso has delved into
writing. In 2005, Urso published a memoir, “A Stranger In The Barrio:
Memoir of a Tampa Sicilian” (iUniverse, 2005). Leland Hawes of the
Tampa Tribune described the memoir as “earthy and emotional,” with
“never a dull word.” Each resident of the 182-bed residence hall will
receive a copy of Urso’s book.
Urso Hall first opened as
Kennedy Place in August 2006. Located on Kennedy Boulevard across from
Plant Hall, the building is 11 stories high and houses 182 students in
122 single apartments and 30 double units. The residence hall is
especially popular among upperclassmen and graduate students.
“We are grateful to Dr. Urso for his generous donation,” said UT
President Ronald L. Vaughn. “His transformative experience at UT
represents everything that’s special about a University of Tampa
education.”