DU is celebrating the 100th anniversary of having a business college, now called Daniels College of Business.

A series of free events open to all members, past and present, is taking place Thursday.

The events will be held on and at locations around Denver where the business school was housed during its existence. In addition, a series of yearlong events will be planned in the near future, including a visit by environmental activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr., nephew of President John F. Kennedy in the fall.

Interim Dean Burce Hutton recognizes that the Centennial celebration for the Daniels College of Business places the college in good company.

“Daniels was one of the first business colleges founded in the United States – a group that includes Wharton, Chicago, Berkeley, Dartmouth, New York, Wisconsin, Illinois, Harvard, Northwestern, and Pittsburgh,” Hutton said in a written statement.

He added, “In this year of celebration, we want the Daniels [College of Business] and Denver communities to know about the extraordinary talent that has come out of this school and their contributions to business and society, especially in Denver and Colorado.”

“We will be creating momentum to continue to make a positive difference in the world in the next 100 years.”

At each of the four locations of the daylong events, students and faculty who attended the school or worked at that location will be honored.

The day’s events include breakfast at the Tramway Education Building in the Denver Performing Arts Complex from 7:30 – 9 a.m. with Dean Hutton and Chancellor Emeritus Daniel Ritchie near the site of the original School of Commerce, Accounts and Finance (circa 1908).

One hundred years ago, the entire student body of DU’s business school was comprised of 12 students. The Daniels College of Business currently has more than 3,000 students enrolled in its undergraduate, graduate and professional programs.

In February, Business Week magazine ranked the Daniels College of Business No. 67 nationally on its 2008 list of the nation’s top undergraduate business programs.

For more information about the Daniels College of Business centennial anniversary events, visit http://daniels.du.edu/100years.aspx.