1/22/2001
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Charles J. Strosacker Foundation of Midland has given Michigan State University a grant of $250,000 to be used toward the new Biomedical and Physical Sciences Facility currently under construction on campus.
The grant will fund the facility's Collaborative Teaching Laboratory, which will be used by the Department of Physics and Astronomy. By utilizing a more personalized approach to teaching, the laboratory will allow faculty to teach in an interactive setting that allows students to develop their science skills.
"In addition to being the first lab of its kind on MSU's campus, it also will be one of the first of its kind in the nation designed for one-on-one, active learning opportunities in physics," said Eugene C. Yehle, chairman of the Charles J. Strosacker Foundation. "The trustees of the foundation support this effort and innovation and are happy to be able to ensure its existence in the facility."
Recent experiments with collaborative learning have proven to MSU faculty that a more personalized approach has greatly benefited students, said Wolfgang Bauer, chairperson of the Department of Physics and Astronomy.
Gathering students in large spaces with grouped tables, computers and blackboards promotes collaborative learning which, after several years of experimentation in the department, clearly reinforces the mathematical and physical reasoning needed to firmly grasp the concepts of physics.
"Physics faculty at MSU have been learning over a long period of time the benefits of teaching in a collaborative atmosphere," Bauer said. "The new facility will enable us to build on our strength and enhance our national leadership position in this field as well as enable us to teach our students more effectively."
"The Strosacker Foundation has been a generous supporter of Michigan State University in the past, and this gift is further evidence of their commitment to supporting important educational opportunities," said MSU President Peter McPherson. "We're glad to count the Foundation among our most significant supporters of the new science facility."
The new Biomedical and Physical Sciences Facility is a seven-story, 360,000-square-foot building located at the corner of Wilson Road and Farm Lane on MSU's campus. It will connect to the biochemistry and chemistry buildings to create the largest research complex on campus and will provide much-needed space for several colleges and departments.
Of the total $93 million cost for the facility, MSU is raising $13.3 million from private sources. The Strosacker Foundation gift brings MSU's efforts to more than $11 million to date.
The Foundation was established in 1957 by the late Charles J. Strosacker, one of the pioneers of Dow Chemical Co., to assist and benefit political subdivisions of the State of Michigan, and religious, charitable, benevolent, scientific or educational organizations.