Long-known as one of the nation’s top engineering colleges, Missouri University of Science and Technology is preparing a move into biology.
Yes, biology.
On April 16, the University of Missouri System Board of Curators came to Rolla for its traditional April meeting and joined local administrators to break ground for the new Bioplex building.
Vice Chancellor Stephen Roberts, the chief strategy officer, speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony explained the connection between engineering and biology that will take place here.
“The 127,000-square-foot Bioplex is Missouri S and T’s most ambitious capital project to date,” said Roberts. “In addition to square footage and cost, the Bioplex is ambitious in terms of the work that will take place within its walls. Inside the building, you’re going to find a wide range of labs and different types of classrooms and common areas. Each of those spaces will play a role in enabling Missouri S and T to draw on the strengths of its legacy and offer a new kind of teaching and learning, one that emphasizes technological breakthroughs in human health.”
Now, Rolla campus research into biology is nothing really new, Roberts said.
“Missouri S and T’s groundbreaking research in biomedical sciences actually dates back to the early 1900s when Professor Ida Bankston conducted experiments in her lab in the basement of Parker Hall,” Roberts said. “Dr. Bankston discovered a screen for Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever that’s still in use today and played a key role in developing a vaccine for typhus.”
Continuing, Roberts said, “Today, literally dozens of S&T faculty in every college conduct research that aims to improve and save human lives.”
This research includes advanced glass technologies used worldwide to heal cancer and treat wounds, drug development for hearing loss and glaucoma, and artificial intelligence applications for diagnosing skin cancer and aiding kidney transplant decisions.
“Missouri S and T’s biomedical researchers are solving for a healthier tomorrow,” Roberts said.
Target for completion of the Bioplex is in 2028.
“It will be Missouri’s most advanced facility in public higher education, with the dual-purpose mission of both workforce training and transformative research in biomedical engineering and applied life sciences,” he said.
The Bioplex building is expected to remain in use for well over a century serving thousands of students and researchers and their programs.
“Prospective students are already taking notice. This past year, a full one in nine of our 8,000 freshmen applicants chose biological sciences for a new program in biomedical engineering,” he said. “This project will accelerate Missouri S and T’s ascension and the discovery of lifesaving knowledge, using that knowledge to create technology, and in bringing those technological innovations to market to support better health and better health care.”
Roberts told the audience that he hoped they would all return three years, or so, from now.
“I look forward to seeing all of you when we gather here again in a little over three years from this afternoon to dedicate the opening of the Bioplex,” he said.
Bioplex is another building made possible by donor support. Others on the list are Havener Center, the Bertelsmeyer Hall and the Innovation Lab, he said.
Roberts mentioned for the audience several people who have been important in preparing for the groundwork. Those included the members of the Missouri University of Missouri System Board of Curators, District 122 state Rep. Tara Peters, as well as her House colleagues Bennie Cook and Don Mayhew; MST officials Pat Liddy, Matt Deckard and Jonathan Garrett; River City Construction personnel Gabe Rodriguez, Kelly Hecklingboard and Bill Matlock; and several important officials from Christner and ZGF.
Also speaking at the ceremony was Todd Graves, chairman of the board of curators. Graves mentioned the role of Keith Holloway, who just recently left the board of curators. “Keith has been a very strong advocate for Missouri S and T,” he said.
“It seems like every time we come to a board meeting here, we cut a ribbon or put a shovel in the ground or something,” Graves said. “A lot of that, I think, is due to (S&T Chancellor) Mo Delghani.”
Gray joked that “Mo is short for his real name, which is Momentum.”
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