A name change to 'Filene Hall'

The building known to the Skidmore community and beyond for more than 40 years as the Therese W. Filene Music Building has a new name: Filene Hall. 

The change was made official Saturday, March 31, in a brief ceremony that coincided with the Filene Music Competition, which the Ladd family has supported since 1982. Attending this year on the behalf of the family were Bill Ladd '83, a member of the College's Board of Trustees, and Mike Ladd, father of Chris '05 and president of the Lincoln and Therese Filene Foundation.

The building - recently renovated to house Special Programs, Arts Administration, and Art History - was the brainchild of Helen Filene Ladd '22, a long-time member of Skidmore's Board of Trustees who funded the building's construction as a tribute to her mother Therese, an advocate of music education.  

At the rededication ceremony, Filene competitors, their families, and other invited guests learned about Helen and her family's crucial role in Skidmore's history through a short video written by Bill Ladd and produced by Lumberjack Films. President Philip A. Glotzbach welcomed Bill and Mike Ladd, both of whom are Helen's grandsons, and thanked the family and the Filene Foundation for their generous support over the decades.

In recognition of Helen Filene Ladd's contributions and Skidmore's long-standing relationship with the Ladd family and the Lincoln and Therese Filene Foundation, the main concert hall in the Arthur Zankel Music Center is named The Helen Filene Ladd Concert Hall.