Many ISU students walk over the bricks in front of Carrie Chapman Catt Hall every day, but few know what the names on them signify.

Those names will be honored today during the “Celebration of Heroines 2000,” said Dave Gieseke, public relations manager for Liberal Arts and Sciences. The event will at 4:30 p.m. in the Plaza of Heroines outside of Catt Hall.

Gieseke said there are currently about 3,000 bricks outside of Catt Hall with women’s names in them.

“Each woman with a brick is considered a heroine in life by a friend, family member or admirer of the women,” he said. “The event is to celebrate the individual.”

Gieseke said narratives about some of the women being honored will be read during the ceremony by Jane Cox, associate professor of theater.

“The celebration is to recognize those honored and the people that honored them,” Gieseke said. “We wanted the women to know what it means to have their names there and that we continue to remember their contribution.”

Dianne Bystrom, director of the Carrie Chapman Catt Center, said she also will be speaking during the celebration to honor women who have served as the Mary Louise Smith Chair in Women and Politics.

“The chair was established to bring women leaders to Iowa State to inspire and guide students,” Bystrom said.

Gieseke said Bystrom will be unveiling four new bricks during the event, one for each of the past Mary Louise Smith chairs and one for the current chair, ABC News correspondent Carole Simpson. He said past chairs being honored are former Sen. Nancy Landon Kassebaum, Elizabeth Dole and Ruth Mandel of Rutgers University.

Bystrom said honoring the Plaza of Heroines and Mary Louise Smith chairs goes well together.

“It is good to tie the presentation of the Mary Louise Smith chairs with the Celebration of Heroines,” Bystrom said. “The chair is meant to offer inspiration to people just like the women whose names are in brick. All women that have bricks in the Plaza of Heroines are role models in someone’s life.”

Gieseke said the Plaza of Heroines was originally dedicated Oct. 6, 1995, and the Celebration of Heroines 2000 is being held for a number of reasons.

“I hope that people appreciate the plaza,” Gieseke said. “There are a lot of things taken for granted, and this is an opportunity for individuals to stand back and think about what the plaza means and why it’s important.”