Purdue Planning Major Lab Project

The school says the project is necessary because nearly 60 percent of entering freshmen are pursuing a STEM-related degree.

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Purdue University has announced plans to build what would be the campus’ first new facility dedicated to teaching labs in nearly 50 years. President Mitch Daniels calls the building, which would upgrade biology and chemistry facilities, "the single most important project that we are considering."

The school says the project is necessary because nearly 60 percent of entering freshmen are pursuing a STEM-related degree, and every student must take science courses.

"As a leading STEM university, Purdue must have the facilities to match the rapidly-evolving sciences," says Daniels, "and I can’t emphasize enough the pressing need we have for this."

The school’s Lilly Hall of Life Sciences and Brown Laboratory of Chemistry opened in 1950 and 1970 respectively. More than 14,000 students take classes in those buildings each year. Daniels says the growing need for lab teaching space makes the time right to strengthen the ties between the departments and allow for integrated teaching.

Purdue is beginning the process by seeking proposals from construction firms. The project still needs approval from the university’s board of trustees. The school says the construction timeline and cost have not yet been finalized.