Construction of a New Accommodation Building and Teaching Room at the Rutgers Pinelands Field Station

Rutgers University New Brunswick, New Brunswick NJ

Investigators

Abstract

ABSTRACT The National Science Foundation has awarded $ 99, 545 to the Rutgers University under the direction of Dr. John Dighton for the construction of an accommodation building and classroom to its Pinelands Field Station. Due to recent growth in use of this field station in the New Jersey pine barrens, Rutgers University has sought to improve the facilities at the station to be able to host short-term residential courses offered by the university and to provide those facilities to other universities and colleges who are also seeking to teach their own courses in the unique ecosystem. The research station was formerly mainly a research facility. As such, interest in the ecology and forestry of the area has attracted many researchers who wish to use the laboratory facilities on a short-term basis or to set up long-term monitoring programs. The lack of adequate accommodation to support visiting researchers has been acute in recent years and has limited its use by non-local institutions. The proposed new building will provide accommodation for up to 20 people in both dormitory and individual rooms, thus accommodating both student classes and visiting researchers. In addition, the building will provide a classroom for educational use and meetings. An existing building will be converted into a teaching laboratory. In addition to serving the Rutgers University community, the facility will be available to other universities and teaching institutes who have expressed a desire to teach courses in the field. In partnership with the Pinelands Preservation Alliance and the New Jersey State Aquarium at Camden, the new facilities will provide a venue for field experiential education for inner city school children and, particularly, their educators.