A large crowd gathered Feb. 25 in the Linksz Pavilion in celebration of the new Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) building, a collaborative effort between the community, college and students, set to open in Spring of 2017.
The S.T.E.M. building will be the staple of the S.T.E.M department, which will provide state-of-the-art labs and classrooms to students in those fields. The current labs are in the basement of Founders Hall.
The first phase of the building project is the construction. The second phase will be to renovate Founders Hall in order to implement physics, engineering, and health labs.
This $17 million project started about two and half years ago, though Bucks President Dr. Stephanie Shanblatt said, “it took about one year just to plan the building so as to stay in budget.” Financial assistance was provided from the state and the county.
Bucks County Commissioner Chairman Robert Loughery said, “The county backs the college with financial strength in order to assist in supporting the funding.” In other words, they allow the school to borrow money.
Dean of the Department of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics at Bucks, Lisa Angelo, said, “We’ve had the same labs for many years, and many of them are in the basement, so the glass is going to be so helpful.”
The main point behind this building is to bring in more students who are interested in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics without the intimidation of a typical solid concrete or brick building. The glass walls will add light and make the place more welcoming.
The college has seen a steady drop in enrollment over the past couple years, and staff are hoping that the new S.T.E.M. building will spark an influx of students onto campus that are interested in such fields.

Shanblatt announced that this is only the first step for S.T.E.M. “This new science center is really just the first phase of our S.T.E.M. initiative in our effort to transform S.T.E.M. on campus.” The next project will take place in Founders Hall, where new physics, engineering and health labs will be set up.
Shanblatt said the building “is a great start for students who wish to start in the workforce or transfer to a four-year school.”
She added, “The country needs more folks to be competitive and use new technologies in order to move forward in this industry,” adding that jobs in such fields typically pay well.
Loughery called the building “a great investment and opportunity, not just for the college, but for the county.”
“Science, math, and technology are heavily involved in businesses today, which means they need skills from people who not only just graduated high school, but from those who are rebuilding their careers.”
He added, “we at the county have a particularly key interest in workforce development, and the workforce as well as local companies will definitely benefit from this. We hope to see an increase in employment.”
As a student representative, neuroscience major and president of the Women of STEM club, Anna Snyder gave her perspective on the development. “It is very gratifying to know that my college is committed to growth and innovation on an ongoing basis,” Snyder says, “these new buildings represent opportunities to broaden my education in sciences.”
Snyder also presented a virtual tour of the building, noting that it “has signature elements such as the glass and wood materials and corridors to establish an effective learning environment.”
Bucks wants to promote the idea that science labs no longer need to be closed or claustrophobic, but instead should be opened up to the whole school, and surrounded by great views of the outside environment.
The virtual tour revealed open and closed study spaces, in which students can gather for group work. “We want science to be accessible, not intimidating,” says Shanblatt.
Angelo noted that “the glass wall is already built and is very welcome as it illuminates new modern labs.”
Loughery says aside from the benefit the building will have for businesses and the community, it’s really about the kids. “Kids who have an interest in science, students who don’t necessarily test well, and those who are unable to get into a bigtime school,” he said.
Loughery believes that because there are many obstacles that stand in our way throughout life, “this is an opportunity to unlock individual’s potential.”
Shanblatt stressed the importance of undergraduate science research, noting that two research projects in engineering and computer science had already been started at Bucks.
Angelo said she was excited to just simply walk through the doors of the building next year. “This building has been a pipe dream of mine for 11 years and I cannot believe how quickly this has come together,” she said.
Angelo also joked, saying, “We cannot wait to get in the building, faculty are already debating on who will get which space and talking about how they are going to use the new alternative teaching spaces.”
During the celebration, each speaker at the event contributed items to a time capsule that will be featured at different events and buried within the building in the coming weeks.
Shanblatt contributed a drone, Loughery added an engine block, and Snyder added a Bucks cell phone case, all of which were 3-D printed.
The time capsule is set to be opened in 50 years, at the college’s centennial celebration.
The new science building is scheduled to open for classes in January 2017, and partners of the project are anxious see the end result. “It is an opportunity that is really going to fuel our students’ education,” said Angelo.
The project will be followed on social media where people can live tweet using hashtag #bucksscience.

Additional reporting from: Karoline Lunddal Dam