Through the generosity of Steven T. Plochocki '73 and Linda Plochocki, the Polish room, in Manoogian Hall, now features a bronze portrait sculpture of Madame Marie (Sklodowska) Curie.

In 2013, Steve Plochocki was presented Wayne State University's Distinguished Alumni Award. During this trip back to campus, Linda and Steve toured the Polish room and noticed that there was something missing. The Polish room is a place on Wayne State's campus that celebrates Polish heritage and houses various works of art reflecting Polish culture. Until this week, it lacked artwork celebrating and representing the accomplishments of great Polish women.

Madame Curie, who was born in Warsaw, Poland, was not only a pioneer in the field of radioactivity but also the first woman to win the Nobel Prize, and the first and only woman to win it twice. Linda and Steve felt that Madame Curie deserved a place in the Polish room and commissioned the artwork with a generous donation to the University Art Collection. It was important to the Plochockis that the artist be of Polish descent, a woman, and a Wayne alumna. In 2016, Evelyn Bachorski-Bowman (MA '81 and MFA '83) was selected by the Wayne State University Art Collections committee to create a portrait sculpture of Madame Marie (Sklodowska) Curie.

"It has been an honor to work with Steve and Linda Plochocki on this project celebrating Madame Curie and highlighting the talent of Ms. Bachorski-Bowman," said College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts Dean Matthew W. Seeger. "Steve has always been a leader and extremely generous. Steve and Linda Plochocki have also established a scholarship in the Department of Communication. The Steven T. Plochocki Endowed Scholarship in Communication supports outstanding students pursuing a career in communications much like Steve. This type of support from our alumni is invaluable."

The official unveiling of the portrait sculpture will take place on Wednesday, October 10, 2018 with a private reception.