By Nyah Adams / News Director

St. Cloud State University is celebrating the dedication of The Judy C. Pearson Department of Communication Studies at 12 p.m. in the Riverview lobby Thursday.

The celebration comes after a $1-million donation was made by the Pearson family that will strengthen the academic department in various ways. SCSU notes this is the first named department on campus.

Some of the ways the money will be disbursed is through international educational grants and scholarships, academic conference grants and guest speakers.

Organizers say the gift is apart of the Unleash the Future campaign which has raised $38-million since its start.