Navy cut the ribbon on its newest facility May 10, the $45 million Wesley A. Brown Field House. The building was dedicated to Brown, 81, a retired lieutenant commander who was the first African-American to graduate from the academy.

The 140,000-square-foot facility will house Navy’s track and field teams and practice space for football and women’s volleyball. Its AstroTurf track is hydraulically controlled. The building will also provide space for physical education, varsity and intramural athletics, club sports and personal fitness. It took approximately two years to complete.

Brown ran cross country for Navy alongside former President Jimmy Carter. He graduated in 1949, served 20 years in the Navy’s Civil Engineer Corps – including stints in Korea and Vietnam – and later joined Howard’s faculty. He retired in 1988.

Brown was honored at a ceremony attended by Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Michael Mullen.