The state Board of Regents unanimously approved a University of Iowa request to name the new addition to Carver-Hawkeye Arena after Dale and Marilyn Howard.

The regents accepted the UI’s proposal to call the addition the "Dale and Marilyn Howard Family Pavilion" at their meeting Tuesday.

The naming will recognize a $5 million the Howards presented to support the construction.

UI President Sally Mason said the Howards have been "very gracious and very generous," towards the athletics program.

Officials will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday to commemorate the addition, which features practice gymnasiums and a new strength and conditioning space for the Hawkeye athletics teams.

Dale Howard, a 1955 UI alumnus, is the owner and president of Dale Howard Inc., an automobile dealership in Iowa Falls.

— by Allie Wright