This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).
The Biology Department at Indiana University of Pennsylvania is housed in Weyandt Hall, a 1960's era structure built to serve as a general-purpose facility for a state teachers' college. The layout and infrastructure of the building were designed for low-impact classroom demonstration activities but not for high-impact modern research. Research efforts are currently hampered by poorly-configured spaces, insufficient access to utilities and fume hoods, deteriorated facilities for shared instruments and problematic climate control and HVAC. This award provides funds to renovate and upgrade research and research training spaces in the Department of Biology. Funds for ceiling, ventilation system and HVAC upgrades, new casework, flooring, sinks, and chemical fume hoods for safety and additional utilities along with installation of equipment for specialized facilities (such as a large freezer units, wash units, and temperature control systems) are provided to increase usefulness and efficiency. Renovations funded by the NSF upgrade will improve research and research training spaces and create 12 laboratories that correspond to areas of research emphasis within the Department. These renovations will create a modern, efficient and effective research and research training environment. The award supports Department's educational philosophy that emphasizes active learning, with integral laboratories with the courses and multiple opportunities for hands-on learning outside the formal classroom structure.
The Department of Biology at Indiana University of Pennsylvania received $951,578 in ARI funding to support a renovation project in Weyandt Hall, a multi-science structure from the 1960s that no longer served its modern mission. The goal of the ARI project was to renovate spaces to make them better suited for research and research training activities. Construction and renovation took place in two phases and were completed in 2013. Replacement and upgrades to HVAC were a major component of the renovation, reflecting the outmoded status of building systems. However, renovation also included substantial replacement of casework and many utility upgrades to improve functionality and safety in laboratories and support facilities. Renovated spaces included rooms used mainly for field biology, for organismal biology and for biology education. Although we renovated six of the spaces as facilities dedicated to the activities of a single research group the balance were designed and renovated as shared facilities for many users thereby magnifying the impact of the project beyond the original senior personnel group. In addition to the NSF funding, the university and the college committed an additional $87,000 to supplement the project, especially in these shared facilities. Renovations were designed for maximum flexibility in order to serve the needs of a changing faculty and in fact there have been several personnel changes since the original request for funding in 2009. One senior personnel left IUP but five new faculty members joined the Biology Department, attracted in part by NSF renovations, especially those to the shared animal quarters. Given these personnel changes and other changes in research emphases, the NSF renovations have served our learning community well. The twelve renovated spaces have supported a variety of research and research training activities and products. These products include 21 articles published in peer-reviewed journals, including journals with an international audience. The renovated spaces supported the acquisitions of 15 external grants totaling approximately $2.825 Million in funding. The most prominent of these was a $527,359 2012 NSF-MRI award to Dr. Megan Knoch et al. for the acquisition of a confocal microscope. In addition the renovated spaces have supported one-time products including a book chapter and a technical project report. Project faculty and student coauthors generated data for presentations at professional meetings in a number of venues ranging from local to international. Oral and poster presentations at these meetings total 53 to date. Biology Department graduate students may elect to perform a semi-independent research investigation and write an M.S. thesis describing their work. In addition, some of the most advanced undergraduate students enroll in an undergraduate Biology Honors Program and also complete a semi-independent research project under the direction of a faculty mentor. Renovated facilities have supported work leading to a total of 6 completed M. S. theses and 8 completed undergraduate Honors theses. Other undergraduate students participate in research/research training in more informal roles such as one-semester independent studies, as paid workers or as research volunteers. In this fashion a total of 150 students have received informal research training supported by renovated project facilities. Students who were not involved in research projects directed by senior personnel used renovated facilities. For example, many students utilized the renovated instrument room for sample storage, preparation and analysis. Others used the renovated autoclave room for decontamination or reagent preparation. Still others relied on upgraded storage and cleaning facilities for field biology equipment. Thus, the project also provided indirect benefits to many additional students. Renovations funded by NSF supported broader Impacts as well. Approximately 35 Upward Bound Math and Science students each year used facilities to plan and conduct research projects as well as for reporting out on their projects. An additional 25 local community members (e.g. Boy Scouts, Master Gardeners) attended workshops each year in NSF facilities. We also used the renovated facilities to recruit graduate students, Biology Honors students and students for the IUP Robert E. Cook Honors College. As student teachers and later as full-time secondary science teachers, Biology Education students who received research training in renovated Room 9 have had an indirect impact on approximately 125 secondary science students each year. The NSF-ARI-R2 program upgraded and modernized 12 laboratories and shared facilities for collaborative faculty-student research and research training. The renovated facilities supported discovery research leading to publications, presentations and funded external grants as well as professional development for graduate and undergraduate students. Renovated facilities also supported community activities, recruiting activities and training for Biology Education students. Both research productivity and student participation have surpassed our original expectations for the renovated facilities. In short, the NSF-funded Weyandt Hall renovations have had a significant impact on IUP and its students and, through outreach, on the regional community.
