Happy Birthday!

1. The Scarlet Raptor got into the act with students during Rutgers University–Camden’s celebration. 

2. Medical students at Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences found time to enjoy 250th anniversary cupcakes at locations in Newark, New Brunswick, Piscataway, Scotch Plains, and Stratford.  

3. November 10 culminated a yearlong celebration at Rutgers University–Newark to mark the 250th anniversary, which happened to coincide with the City of Newark’s 350th anniversary in 2016. Chancellor Nancy Cantor also hosted a dinner reception at the newly renovated 15 Washington Street building for alumni who were recognized as Rutgers 250 Fellows.  

4. The crown of the Empire State Building was lit in scarlet to commemorate the 250th anniversary celebration.

5. This commemorative American flag flew over the U.S. Capitol in 2016. In a ceremony on the Old Queens lawn, ROTC cadets raised the flag, which was donated to Rutgers by Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen and which will have a permanent home in the Visitor Center at Rutgers University–New Brunswick.

6. As a Rutgers 250 Fellow, one of nearly 100 alumni speakers who participated in a Day of Revolutionary Thinking, musician and writer Lenny Kaye RC’67 relived the explosion of rock ’n’ roll at Rutgers University–New Brunswick while he was an undergraduate.

7. Robert Goodman, the executive dean of the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, gave remarks that preceded the planting of a Rutgers 250 All-Star Variety Scarlet Fire dogwood tree on the Old Queens lawn.

8. Deiner Park, which overlooks the Raritan River at Rutgers University–New Brunswick, was the location for a student festival, which was hosted by the Division of Student Affairs, and provided prime viewing of the fireworks.  

9. An elegant dinner, held for the Rutgers 250 Fellows, took place in a reception tent near the new academic building at Rutgers University–New Brunswick. 

10. The Rutgers Kirkpatrick Choir performed during the dinner reception held to honor the Rutgers 250 Fellows.

11. The Revolutionary monument, a gift from Johnson & Johnson, was moved to several locations throughout the year for the benefit of the Rutgers community. On November 10, it was positioned on Seminary Place in front of the new academic building at Rutgers University–New Brunswick and bathed in scarlet and white lights.   

12. During an afternoon ceremony on the Old Queens lawn, president Robert Barchi initiated the ringing of the Old Queens bell, a gift of the university’s namesake, Henry Rutgers. Beginning at 2:50 p.m., the bell rang for 250 seconds, as did bells in all of Rutgers’ host communities, to honor the anniversary.

13. The Old Queens building was illuminated to celebrate the 250th anniversary, as were other landmarks at Rutgers.

14. Lieutenant General Flora D. Darpino CLAW’86, the Judge Advocate General of the United States Army, was one of the Rutgers 250 Fellows who spoke at Rutgers University–Camden as part of the Day of Revolutionary Thinking lecture series.

For more photographs and videos of the November 10, 2016, celebration, visit 250.rutgers.edu.