TODAY at Minnesota State Mankato is published in May, August and January and mailed to 90,000 alumni and friends. The mission of TODAY is to entertain, inform and connect readers to campus.
Spring 2007
Volume 8 Issue 3
Some say lab-based television shows like CSI have resulted in an increase in the number of students pursuing the sciences at Minnesota State University, Mankato, contributing to a college and a building that are fairly bursting inside 1970s-era brick walls.
And while Trafton houses some of the most unique and innovative programs on campus, the building—by most accounts—is anything but a sleek, well-lit CSI set. The hallways are narrow and maze-like and most doors are closed, many with paper over the one tiny window that might have provided a glimpse.
"The one thing that science buildings like our existing building tell you is that you've entered a secretive world," says John Frey, dean of the College of Science, Engineering and Technology. "With no windows and no way of looking in to see what's going on, it seems that our programs aren't open to the public and that's not the case."
To compensate for thirty-five years behind closed doors, the University is constructing a new, window-filled, three-story addition. It will literally put science on display at Minnesota State University, Mankato, with chemistry, geology and molecular biology taking the lead. It will also make space in the existing building for electrical and computer engineering on the second floor of Trafton North and civil engineering on the third floor, as well as for projects and partnerships like the Center for Engineering and Manufacturing Excellence, the Water Resources Center, National Science Foundation Grant projects, a greenhouse, an herbarium, and the civil engineering department's concrete canoe for an upcoming competition.
Classrooms and labs will be airy, open, flexible, and capable of hosting world-class research and adapting to the needs of ever-evolving science curricula. Student gathering areas will encourage group study, formulation of research ideas and collaborations.
The 67,000-square-foot structure, scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2008, will feature high ceilings and a two-story atrium linking the existing Trafton to the addition. That space will include a balcony with tables for students to gather, eye-catching and science-related art, and possibly coffee and food service.
"If we want to keep students interested in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, we've got to open them up," Frey says. "We've got to let them peek into our world and discover what's going on."
During a tour of the existing Trafton, students and faculty don't seem the least bit surprised to see the dean strolling the hallways. And he doesn't seem surprised, either, to see students busy at work on a Friday afternoon at 4:30. With labs scheduled all week—sometimes even on Saturdays—getting time is difficult.
"You'll notice there are no chairs," Frey says of a chemistry lab. "Students have to stand during lab due to lack of space. And if two students, standing at stations that are back to back, were to pull out drawers at the same time, they would bump into each other, possibly while working on an experiment. Not good."
To complete a project in that lab, goggle-clad students have to gather up their papers and trays of glass test tubes filled with biochemical samples, open a door, navigate a busy hallway and open yet another lab door across the hall. It doesn't take a scientist to see that this can't be good, either.
The entire building suffers from a lack of space and flexibility. Power and technology systems are inadequate. Ventilation is poor. Fume hoods and labs are significantly outdated. Light bulbs dangle in the stairwells where asbestos was removed. And water from the leaking roof literally runs down the walls in a classroom filled with computers.
Over the years, space has continuously been carved out of the building to make room for new and growing programs. Cramming offices and lab space in every nook and cranny has stripped Trafton of student spaces and the very thing a university is supposed to be: a laboratory of ideas, inspiration and space for minds to work.
"So, when we talk about why the new building, it's simple," Frey says. "We need to give our students and faculty the space they need to do great science and engineering."
Trafton—including its South, Center and North wings—was constructed in 1972 to house fifteen academic programs and serve about 1,000 majors. Today, Trafton is home to some forty programs and 2,500 majors. It serves more students than any other facility in the entire Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System, yet has fewer square feet per student than peer institutions.
The demand for new programs, the growth of the campus as a whole, a strong interest in faculty and student research, an increase in outside partnerships, and pure wear and tear are driving the upgrades.
Frey says a strong national interest in STEM—Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics—is also pushing Minnesota State Mankato to remain on the cutting edge of these fields.
STEM is driving the nation right now because we are not producing the scientists and engineers needed," Frey said. "We need to focus on these areas if we want to keep Minnesota and the United States at the innovation level that it should be."
And, he says, as Minnesota State Mankato matures as a university and attracts students interested in STEM, the institution is also raising the bar in terms of research. He remembers a time on campus when there was virtually no support for faculty research. Today, research activity is on the rise.
In addition to the growing number of majors in the college, Trafton also serves thousands of students each year through general education and service courses, particularly in health areas, like Human Biology and Human Anatomy.
"We want to provide a solid background for all students," Frey says. We need to create a great atmosphere for students who aren't majoring in the sciences, because they'll need to tap into STEM during their careers or at least understand its importance."
The addition will be attached to Trafton South, creating another entry from the eastern side of campus. On the exterior, the building will continue Taylor Center's architectural curve, providing visual continuity.
The addition will also express Minnesota State Mankato's commitment to sustainable development and is among the first facilities in the system to implement Minnesota's Sustainable Development Building Guidelines.
Interior materials were chosen for color as well as their recycled content. Air exchange systems are energy efficient. There will be an area to experiment with solar power. Rain gardens will help filter pollution from water runoff and provide an applied way for students to monitor the benefits of such a garden. The geology department will be involved in creating a landscape of rocks representing all areas of Minnesota for teaching purposes and to help with soil retention.
From a student perspective, things will be less crowded and a lot more logical. Academic programs that should be near each other will be. For example, chemistry and biology—both "wet sciences," and currently located nowhere near each other—will then be housed adjacent to each other.
"With those departments side by side, there will be a better sharing of ideas, equipment and better instructional spaces, all giving students a more supportive environment," Frey says.
Gregg Marg, chair of the Department of Biology, has been actively involved in the design process. One of the many things Marg is most looking forward to in the addition is having space for gatherings, speakers and receptions.
Currently, if a club wants to bring in speakers, students actually listen by sitting in the halls. Last fall, when the Darlene and William Radichel Herbarium received a donation for some upgrades, the reception took place in the hallway. And if students want to gather before or after class, there's truly nowhere for them to do so inside the building.
"Over the years, all of the student space has been pulled away due to the growth in programs," Frey explains. "We need to return space to students. They need to have that time together where they discuss concepts and exchange views."
With some of the most space-intensive departments moving into the vacated spots, the existing Trafton will be able to breathe a sigh of relief. That will allow the second phase, a renovation of more than 70,000 existing square feet—including the renovation of 54,000 square feet of classrooms and 20,000 square feet of hallway space—to begin in 2009.
Much of that work will be invisible: heating and cooling systems, ventilation upgrades and repairs of leaking roofs. Existing labs and classrooms will also get a makeover and there will be some rearranging of departments and spaces.
Walking through the existing building, Frey can, off the top of his head, rattle off what every room will be and where it will go in the "new" Trafton: both the addition and renovation. He's also intimately familiar with the associated costs and deeply appreciates the State's support—funding for both the addition and renovation comes from the State of Minnesota. Tours, student testimonials and strong legislative buy-in helped boost Trafton as the most pressing project in the System.
"Need brought us to the top," Frey says. "This is our time and our place to get the space we so desperately need."
Frey said the new design, combined with renovation, will create a unified space for the sciences that expresses Minnesota State Mankato's strong commitment to the future and provides a home for students and faculty to find tomorrow's answers.
"Education is expensive, but we have to provide the right environment to cultivate new minds, to allow them to reach their full potential," Frey says. "We have top-notch faculty and now we'll have new space for quality instruction and research."
AmyJo Lennartson is a freelance writer and editor based in Eagle Lake
