Renovations to Increase Residence Capacity at the UNM Sevilleta Field Station

University Of New Mexico, Albuquerque NM

Investigators

Abstract

This award will be used to create additional residence space at the University of New Mexico's Sevilleta Field Station, allowing us to fully utilize the opportunities created by the new UNM Sevilleta Education and Research Facility (SERF). The latter is being constructed in two phases with funds from the US Fish and Wildlife Service ($6.5 million) and the University of New Mexico ($1.4 million). Phase I, the research wing, is complete. The construction of Phase II, the teaching and outreach wing, will begin this spring (2007). The Sevilleta Field Station is entering a new era. The station came into being in the late 1980's to support the UNM Sevilleta Long-term Ecological Research (LTER) Program. In the past decade, LTER use of the station has grown, non-LTER research activities at the station have grown, and the mission of the station has expanded to include research, education and outreach activities beyond the LTER program. Renovation of existing buildings to provide residence space will allow field station housing capacity to keep pace with classroom and laboratory facilities. One goal is to offer several full college-level courses each summer in subject areas that take advantage of the natural environment of the Sevilleta refuge and its surrounding environment, and the SERF. The renovations also will allow greater capability to conduct formal and informal education and create outreach experiences for visitors of all ages from New Mexico, the US, and beyond. UNM is a minority serving institution, and the Sevilleta Field Station and Sevilleta LTER Program are dedicated to enhancing minority participation in field-based research. Adding more comfortable housing to complement our new Sevilleta Education and Research Facility will greatly aid us in this endeavor.