Hands-on, feet-wet science exploration and learning – what student wouldn’t love that?
Now more children will have those opportunities thanks to gifts from the R.C. Durr and George A. and Delores E. Renaker Charitable Foundations, which are designed to increase science literacy for area children.
Renderings of facility
Both foundations’ donations will help fund the construction of a K-16 STEM Outreach Center at the Thomas More College Ohio River Biology Field Station.
This year, the one-of-a kind Field Station celebrates its 50th anniversary. Located on 25 acres along the Ohio River in Campbell County, the facility supports research studies for private and public corporations, institutions, and agencies; and, it provides an array of STEM offerings for students as well as professional development opportunities for area science teachers.
“The generosity of both the Durr and Renaker Foundations greatly expands the unprecedented work happening at our nationally-recognized Biology Field Station,” said Thomas More College President David A. Armstrong. J.D. “As the Field Station marks its fiftieth year of operations, we now look to the next 50 and how Thomas More College can continue to share science education with young people and spur their interests in STEM careers.”
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The groundbreaking will take place Sunday, July 23, at 3:30 p.m. at the Field Station, 8309 Mary Ingles Hwy, California. It will be followed on by a picnic and celebration on the river. More information about the Field Station website.
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As a result of years of extensive outreach activities, the demand for programs, as well as requests for collaborative research and consulting, the work outputs of the talented Field Station team simply outgrew the existing space.
The Durr and Renaker Foundation’s financial support will be used to build a STEM Outreach Center adjacent to the main building that will not only alleviate the physical constraints that currently exist, but will also expand the reach of the Station to a regional, national, and even global scale as a result of the distance-learning technology that will be incorporated into the building design.
“We are pleased The Foundation’s financial gift will benefit students and teachers throughout the region,” said Wilbert Ziegler, President and CEO of the R.C. Durr Foundation. “We welcome our part in expanding the mission and impact of this special educational resource in our area.”
Floor Plan. (Drawings by ATA/Beilharz Architects)
Stephanie Renaker-Jansen, CEO of the George A. and Delores E. Renaker Charitable Foundation, echoed Ziegler’s feelings about the impact of the new facility and said, “Our Foundation has been a long-time champion and supporter of the Thomas More College Field Station, investing in everything from equipment to programming, and we are particularly happy to provide the funds for the distance-learning technology that will enable the staff to reach even more students, train a greater number of teachers, and share best practices with other field stations around the world.”
Annually, nearly 2,000 local school children, many from lower socioeconomic backgrounds visit the Biology Field Station. The new Outreach Center will allow more schools to access TMC’s STEM outreach programs, exposing more students to biology, astronomy, chemistry, engineering and physics.
“This gift affords us to the opportunity to build a facility that will enable more students, throughout the Greater Cincinnati area, around the nation, and even globally to access our educational offerings and expand their interest and excitement about the sciences,” said Christopher N. Lorentz, PhD, Director of the Thomas More College Biology Field Station. Lorentz was recently named the Vice-President of an international consortium of field stations.
From Thomas More College
