Winter 1996

$6.8 million grant funds research center

A new $6.8 million Center for Technological Research with Industry at Rose-Hulman will expand programs to boost economic development and create a national model for project-based education.

Federal funding for the Center and related auxiliaries is included in the new budget for the U.S. Department of Energy and the Army Corps of Engineers. Rose-Hulman officials and Indiana 7th District Congressman John Myers announced plans for the building which will be located east of Moench Hall near the Rotz Lab.

Construction, which will begin in July, will take about a year to complete.

The two-story, 40,000-square-foot building will include space for Rose-Hulman’s new Technological and Entrepreneurial Development program. The program is increasing career opportunities for students while providing new technical and scientific services to make Indiana businesses more competitive.

Hulbert said the Center will become a reality because of the congressman’s efforts. "Congressman Myers shared our vision of the economic and educational benefits that will result from this Center," Hulbert noted. "Because of John Myers’ leadership in Congress, funding is now available to create programs and facilities that will benefit faculty, students and businesses for decades," Hulbert stated.

Myers said the funding will allow Rose-Hulman to expand efforts to work with regional industry and government sponsors to increase the nation’s competitiveness.

"The Center will increase Rose-Hulman’s role as a leader in undergraduate engineering and science education," said Myers, who retired in December after representing the 7th Congressional District for 30 years.

The Center will not only provide new educational experiences for students and faculty, it will also boost economic development, Hulbert noted.

"The Center is a win-win situation for faculty and students as well as the economy. The activities that occur in the Center will create new jobs, products and services," he said.

Construction of the Center comes at an important time to help Rose-Hulman launch the Technology and Entrepreneurial Development Program (TED), Hulbert stated.

"TED started nine months ago with the goal to be a national model for industry-supported, project-based engineering, mathematics and science education.

"The program will also increase the opportunities for our graduates to begin their careers in Indiana," he explained. TED was created with a $4 million grant from the Lilly Endowment Inc., of Indianapolis.

The new building will also provide space for a variety of technical and scientific activities, programs and services to assist business and industry.

The facility’s design features modular, work bays adaptable to a variety of technical and scientific activities. It will include labs where prototypes of new products or processes can be developed and tested.

The need for the Center was a recommendation of the Commission on the Future of Rose-Hulman.

"This Center is vital to Rose-Hulman’s goal to meet the needs of our students and society in the 21st century," Hulbert emphasized.