University dedicates Henson Science Hall

SALISBURY, MD ----Before a festive audience of friends of the University and members of the campus community, President Janet Dudley-Eshbach cut the ribbon today on Salisbury University's new $37 million Henson Science Hall.

At 145,500 square feet, the new science building is the largest academic facility on campus and one of the largest science buildings in the state.

The three-story brick structure houses five of the seven departments of the Richard A. Henson School of Science and Technology, endowed by the late Maryland aviation pioneer who lived in Salisbury, and also the Guerrieri Laboratory Wing, endowed by the Guerrieri Family Foundation of Ocean City, supplemented by the State of Maryland's Private Donation Incentive Program.

"Maryland's unparalleled quality of life is directly related to the excellence of the State's higher education system," said Gov. Glendening. "The tremendous work and important research that will be performed here at Salisbury University is a shining example of what we can achieve through meaningful investment in our outstanding colleges and universities."

"I am very grateful to Gov. Glendening who has made this a truly Golden Age of building construction for the University System of Maryland, and to Del. Norman Conway for his constant perseverance in the General Assembly on Salisbury University's behalf. We also want to acknowledge another pair of dear friends, Richard Henson and the Guerrieri Family, for opening up new possibilities for our students," said SU President Dudley-Eshbach.

"Science education has made remarkable strides in the past 30 or 40 years, not the least of which is the introduction of newer, safer ways of teaching from the laboratory bench," said USM Chancellor William E. Kirwan.

"Everything--from the computerized replication of experimental results to the safe handling of chemicals--has been revolutionized," said Kirwan.

"Nonetheless, all of these wonderful changes have put laboratory space at a premium, and at many institutions there is a constant struggle for room in which to work. I am happy to say that at Salisbury University, however, our young people and their teachers will be able to experience a quality education in science and technology in a great new facility with plenty of capacity. The Henson building is another indicator that Salisbury is an innovator, and well deserving of its national reputation for academic excellence."

Henson Science Hall is the first academic facility to be constructed at SU in a decade. (The last was Fulton Hall, home to the liberal and performing arts, which opened in 1990.) The new state-of-the-art science hall houses the departments of biology/environmental health, chemistry, physics and engineering, mathematics and computer science, and geography and geosciences.

It holds 12 classrooms of various sizes including two tiered auditoriums, 32 teaching laboratories and 20 research laboratories. Salisbury and the Henson School are recognized nationally as leaders in the undergraduate research movement and its alumni have gone on to such institutions as the University of Maryland College Park, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, National Institutes of Health and Duke University, among others. The 20 undergraduate research labs allow for highly motivated students like those to work with faculty on self-directed projects. The "smart" classrooms and labs also are wired for the Internet and computer-projection systems. In addition, the building has student study rooms, conference rooms and 95 faculty/staff offices.

Planning for the building has been underway for 10 years. Dr. Tom Jones, dean of the Henson School, and other University officials visited science facilities throughout Maryland and beyond researching the latest in science construction. To accommodate the new facility, two buildings were demolished: an old one-story dining hall, and a metallic one-story multi-use building. The current home of the Henson School, Devilbiss Hall, will be renovated to house the Nursing and Health Sciences departments, previously located on Power Street near the athletic fields. These departments have never been on main campus. Having the different departments in such close proximity "allows sciences to be more inter-disciplinary," said Jones.

"This is indeed an exciting moment for me personally and for the future of science education at Salisbury University," said Jones. "I have spent over 20 years teaching biology and mentoring undergraduate research students in Devilbiss Hall. While Devilbiss served us well in the '70s and '80s, the requirements of higher education science instruction today and the ever increasing size of the science student body and faculty have led us to this ribbon cutting of this state-of-the-art complex. This facility will enable us to prepare highly competitive graduates for a world where science literacy is essential."

Architectural firms involved were Cho, Benn, and Holback, and Mitchell/Giurgola. The construction management was by Bovis Lend Lease.

FACT SHEET

Salisbury University Science Building Construction/Related Costs: Total Construction Cost: $33.7 Million Design & Related Fees: $ 2.1 Million Equipment: $ 1.5 Million Total Project Cost: $37.3 Million

Building Facts: Gross Square Footage: 145,500 Faculty/Staff Offices: 95 Lecture Rooms: 12 (Total Capacity - 550) Teaching Labs: 32 (Total Capacity - 671) Undergrad Research Labs: 20 (Total Capacity- 186) Student Study Areas: 5 (Total Capacity - 150) Conference/Support Rooms: 12

(Labs Housed in Guerrieri Laboratory Wing)

Departments Housed in Building: Biology/Environmental Health Chemistry Geography & Geosciences Mathematics and Computer Science Physics and Engineering

Major Endowment / Gift Information: May 1988: Richard A. Henson - $2.5 Million July 1998: Richard A. Henson - $1 Million* Feb. 2000: Guerrieri Family Foundation / State of Maryland Private Donation Incentive Program: $850,000

*For new science equipment

Majors Information: Science Majors in 1970: Approximately 50 Science Majors in 2001: 1,148

Technology Highlights: Smart classrooms and labs wired for the internet and cmputer-projection systems Every student seat hard wired for computers. (Design also allows for wireless technology, when appropriate.) Classrooms outfitted with mobile computer stations so space can be reconfigured to the needs of the professor and individual classes. $2.5 million for new scientific equipment including such instruments as a $250,000 nuclear magnetic resonance detector. Special ventilation systems and rooms for handling hazardous waste.

Henson Science Hall Web site