A Landmark Historic Project With DaVinci Single-Width Slate

Every college has one. A single stand-out building that serves as a landmark structure for the campus. At Mt. Aloysius College in Cresson, Pennsylvania, it’s the historic 1897 brick Administration Building. And now, with an elegant new DaVinci® Single-Width Slate roof overhead, it’s more of an attraction than ever before.

Rising more than four stories tall and housing a variety of offices and classrooms, the Administration Building at Mt. Aloysius College is accented with turrets, steeples and a massive watch tower. For too long a faded and weathered roof took away from its appearance and functionality.

    “The roof was in a substandard condition and needed to be replaced,” says Shelley Campbell, vice president of operations at Mt. Aloysius College. “That started us thinking about the ‘total cost of investment’ for a new roof.

“We needed a dependable roof that would be easy to maintain, have a quality appearance and be backed by a long-term warranty. The ideal roof would also be impact-, fire- and weather-resistant, durable and resilient. That’s when we learned that DaVinci Roofscapes could bring us all these features.”
 

When college leaders met with the team at Burns & Scalo, they discovered that the roofing company had more than a decade of experience installing DaVinci products. The roofing team completes up to 15 intricate residential and commercial projects each year using DaVinci’s composite slate and shake products.

“Right from the start we just knew the DaVinci product would transform the Administration Building,” says Adam Galis, vice president at Burns & Scalo out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. “And we were correct. The DaVinci Single-Width Slate product in the European color blend doesn’t just fortify the building from the elements, it also elevates its architectural presence. It’s a perfect complement to the historic character of the campus.”
 

According to Galis, the project exemplifies the pinnacle of roofing craftsmanship. The scale and complexity of the building required master-level planning, technical skill and artistry.

“The Administration Building features one of the most complex roof structures in the region,” says Galis. “Steep pitches, multiple elevations, intricate valleys, convex and concave structural radiuses, turrets, steeples, towers and ornate details. These all required extraordinary precision.

“To overcome these challenges our team carefully staged the project, relying on our experienced craftsmen. The DaVinci Single-Width Slate was ideal for this complex project. It provided the authenticity of natural slate, but with the consistency and workability that allowed us to achieve flawless installation on a challenging design.”

For the exemplary reroofing work done on this project, Burns & Scalo has been named a winner of a 2025 DaVinci Masterpiece Contractor Project of the Year Award. The team earned the honor based on the excellence of installation work, outstanding visual impact and ability of the roofing work to transform the look of this structure.
 

“The Burns & Scalo team provided excellent service for this project,” says Campbell. “They listened and followed the college’s directives to accommodate the staff and students on campus. Most importantly, they attentively returned the look of the Administration Building’s roof to its original slate appearance. The new DaVinci roof is simply beautiful and everyone loves it.”

    The college is so impressed with the appearance of the DaVinci composite slate, the life expectancy and the low maintenance considerations, that they’ve already made the decision to reroof the 1923 chapel sitting next to the Administration Building. That reroofing project will take place in the summer of 2026.

    “We want the roofs of the two buildings to match,” says Campbell. “This will give the college long-term beauty for both structures on our campus. Thanks to Burns & Scalo, we’re making some smart investments in roofing for the future at Mt. Aloysius College.”
 

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