The Biology Department is located in a new $27.5 million interdisciplinary science facility that was completed in early 2007. This includes 50,000 sq. ft of new construction, the complete renovation of an existing 36,400 sq. ft., and a 4,750 sq. ft. bridge/tower structure that links the new and renovated space to all other science departments and facilities.
Faculty from the Departments of Biology and Chemistry, as well as the Programs in Biochemistry, Environmental Science, and Neuroscience occupy the new space, but offices and labs have been integrated, allowing cross-disciplinary learning, conversation, and collaboration among students and faculty from all science departments and programs.
Every faculty mentor who conducts laboratory research has a 600 sq. ft. research lab equipped with sinks, gas jets, hoods, benches space, storage, refrigeration, desk space for student researchers, and state-of-the-art equipment relevant to her/his specific research program.
In addition, there are a number of shared equipment and research spaces, including over 2000 sq. ft. of wet and dry analytical chemistry space, a 1200 sq. ft. of computer labs, shared molecular/micro biology space, an IACUC-certified animal care facility, scanning electron microscopy space, and a 1000 sq. ft. green house and plant cultivation space.
Each laboratory course is taught in its own state-of-the art laboratory space. The new facility offers informal student-faculty“living rooms” for various cross-disciplinary clusters including organismal form and function, biochemistry of nucleic acids and proteins, neurobiology, and ecology/environmental science.
Each living room has been equipped with couches, networked computer terminals, and moveable chairs and tables for student study and meeting space.
For students interested in field study Muhlenberg College owns and operates two separate field stations, the 63 acre Graver Arboretum, and 38 acre Raker Wildlife Preserve. Both sites offer access to natural terrestrial and aquatic study sites and have equipped research laboratories.
