Slippery Rock Development is a local group focused on improving the quality of life and the town of Slippery Rock. It began more than six years ago, in a conversation among several people with an active interest in Slippery Rock - a conversation about the deterioration of the town empty store fronts, upheaving sidewalks, weeds in front of buildings, deteriorating facades. The impact was felt not only on the town itself, but also on the University Slippery Rock University was having trouble attracting and retaining students and faculty. A small group of concerned citizens formed and called itself Slippery Rock Development. The centerpiece of Slippery Rock, Pa., is the university. In 1889, the town landscape was forever changed by the creation of the Slippery Rock State Normal School. The first class was made up of 168 students enrolled in a 14-week term, and tuition, room and board came to a grand total of $32. Since that time, the university has been renamed three times- from Slippery Rock State Teacher's College to Slippery Rock State College to Slippery Rock University-and has grown from its humble beginnings to accommodate over 8,000 students. The Slippery Rock Development group has revitalized the downtown area and added cultural and social events.