The Pressing Need
The Department of Chemistry is now at a critical juncture. As a result of past success, the program has outgrown obsolete facilities originally built in 1927 and efficiency measures will take us no further. Simply put, existing facilities are unsuitable for 21st century teaching and research. The situation creates far-reaching struggles:
- It is extremely difficult to hire world-class faculty and advance their work without sufficient modern lab space.
- Important interdisciplinary research projects cannot be initiated or developed.
- Undergraduate students must double up in antiquated labs, which operate 14 hours each day.
- Teaching innovation is constrained due to limited lab space and lack of common meeting areas.
The Building
The new Chemistry/Chemical Biology Building project has two major goals: to provide a centralized home for lower-level undergraduate chemistry instruction and provide state-of-the-art research facilities for faculty and graduate students working in chemical biology and chemical synthesis. The new building will be located on the corner of University Avenue and Buckman Drive, serving as a gateway to campus.
The first and second floors will mainly serve as the undergraduate levels. The first floor will house the general chemistry teaching labs as well as the general chemistry office and advisor's office. The first floor atrium opens upward into the second floor space, connected by an open staircase. The ground floor also provides a lounge area for students. The second floor will be home to the organic teaching labs, a lecture hall, and the majority of the Chemistry Learning Center (CLC). The CLC will serve as a resource to undergraduate chemistry students for advising, tutoring, study sessions, and testing. The CLC will also have a large meeting room on the first floor. General and Organic Chemistry labs will have glass walls, allowing for observation from either floor of the atrium.
The majority of the graduate research space will be located on floors three and four. The chemical biology labs will be located on the third floor, with a single additional bay on the fourth floor. Glass-walled write-up spaces look into the labs from the east and west side. The third floor will also house offices and two conference rooms. The fourth floor will contain the Synthesis lab. Similar to the Chemical Biology labs, glass-enclosed write-up rooms will flank the Synthesis lab on both sides of the laboratory block. The fourth floor will have several offices and shared interaction spaces as well as a conference room.
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