Hope College will renovate former library space housed in the Peale Science Center into a modern facility for research and research training in molecular biology-biochemistry. Specifically, they will develop a molecular biology/biochemistry laboratory with an adjoining computer laboratory facility. While the new laboratories will enhance the research productive of all faculty, they will have a direct effect on the research programs of four faculty members and their students. Since the time of their initial appointments at Hope College, these members of the Hope College faculty have collectively worked with 135 undergraduate research students, 56 of whom have either obtained the Ph.D. degree or are currently in graduate school. The renovated laboratories will allow for integration of all aspects of their program. They will: 1) provide a center for crucial and delicate research equipment; 2) provide extended bench space for upper class student researchers; 3) enhance the ability of students and faculty to conduct collaborative studies; 4) facilitate the integration of bench-level research and research training with computer-based data acquisition and analysis; and 5) provide a suitable setting and encouraging atmosphere for students interested in conducting research in the expanding molecular sciences.
