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WKU's New Science Building
Bowling Green, Ky. - Western Kentucky University's new science building will be more than a hands-on learning laboratory. The Complex for Engineering and Biological Sciences will be an economic development tool for the region.
"I think this building is going have a tremendous impact not only on student learning but on economic development," said Dr. Blaine Ferrell, dean of Ogden College of Science and Engineering. The $20 million, 72,000-square-foot facility will open in January. The three-story facility will house the engineering department (civil, mechanical and electrical programs) on the first and second floors with the biotechnology and biodiversity centers on the third floor. Thanks to more than $2 million in federal earmarks, students and faculty will have access to state-of-the-art high-tech equipment. "Producing students who are competitive and successful in the workplace requires training with the most modern equipment," said Dr. Richard Bowker, head of the biology department. "I'm grateful that President Gary Ransdell, the state government and the federal government have joined together to provide this extraordinary opportunity for our students. The payback on that investment is that Western will provide better training for students and keep them in Kentucky." The engineering program is already paying dividends for area industries, such as the General Motors Corvette plant, Trace Die Cast, Sumitomo Corp., Dana Corp., Span Tech Inc., Bowling Green Municipal Utilities and Kentucky Department of Transportation. "The most important thing about the building is what it means to Kentucky," said Dr. John Reis, head of WKU's engineering department. "This new building is a symbol of economic growth and development." The engineering program has an enrollment of 300 students with that number expected to grow. "We have increased the number of engineering graduates in this state," Dr. Reis said. "That means more engineers are available to support industry in our area." Western began offering bachelor's degrees in engineering in the fall of 2001 after the Council on Postsecondary Education approved joint engineering programs between WKU and the University of Kentucky and the University of Louisville. Western's program is awaiting accreditation from the Engineering Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering Technology. "A tremendous manufacturing base around southcentral Kentucky was unable to hire graduates from other engineering programs in the state," Dr. Reis said. "This inability to fill engineering positions made it more difficult for those industries to remain competitive. One of the primary purposes for the creation of the engineering programs was to create engineering graduates who would stay here and fill those positions. Most of our graduates have done this, demonstrating the success of the programs." Both the engineering and biology departments, as well as others in Ogden College's Applied Research and Technology Program (ARTP), provide students with hands-on learning and research opportunities. "Our educational philosophy in engineering is that people learn best by doing," Dr. Reis said. "The engineering portion of the building was designed and constructed around our philosophy of design-build-test in a project-based learning environment." He said research has shown that this method is more effective in training engineers than the traditional lecture-based method. "This educational style also results in graduates being more productive in industry more quickly than graduates of traditional engineering programs," Dr. Reis said. In fact, civil engineering students and faculty in WKU's Scott Center for Construction and Engineering played a key role in the construction process of the new building and conducted foundation inspections, concrete strength testing, inspection of reinforcing steel, and temperature monitoring of the concrete during winter months. "This was not a pretend or classroom project, but the students were performing the work as a professional consulting engineering firm would have through the Scott Center of the ARTP," said Matthew Dettman, center director. Engineering students also are involved in numerous projects such as the concrete canoe, steel bridge, robotics and mini-Baja competitions. The new building has a two-story integrated applications laboratory for use by all engineering disciplines and will have a rapid prototyping facility to produce test parts. The biology program has a similar educational philosophy, Dr. Bowker said. "In the biology department, we engage our students in "doing" biology. One of our views on engaging students is to provide them with opportunities to do independent research or work with faculty on research projects," he said. "One of the hallmarks of great programs is providing opportunities for students to work with faculty. In that respect we have a premier undergraduate biology program. That's just something we do in biology and we have a strong history of doing that." Students in the biotechnology and biodiversity centers work with faculty on molecular biology, molecular genetics, biotechnology, ecological, environmental and other research projects. The biotechnology center also helped Sygen train technicians to assist its research and development scientists. The Complex for Engineering and Biological Sciences was designed to provide "Windows into Science." Visitors to the building, including preschool to high school students, can watch researchers or engineers at work on their projects. "The building has no traditional classrooms, but the entire building itself is a classroom," Dr. Reis said. "We see it as a recruitment tool to bring more people into science and engineering." More WKU news is available at www.wku.edu. If you'd like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.
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