Novozymes Gift Supports RU Center for the Sciences

President Kyle and Dean Rogers show an architectural drawing of RU's new Center for the Sciences.

International bio-innovation company Novozymes presented a $50,000 check July 12 to Radford University for construction of a laboratory in the new Center for the Sciences building on campus. The Novozymes Biology Lab will be a teaching facility for introductory biology courses for undergraduate students.

Novozymes President Patrick Patterson and Business Systems Specialist Bobbie Grimes presented the gift to Radford University President Penelope W. Kyle at a ceremony at the biotech company's Salem facility.

"We couldn't be more pleased with this relationship," Kyle said during the ceremony. "We are so delighted to be partners with you, and we are so indebted to you for this gift."

Patterson said the company's partnership with Radford University "fits in really well with our initiatives toward both education and sustainability."

Construction on the Center for the Sciences is expected to begin this year, with a completion date of fall 2014. In addition to teaching and research laboratories, the $49 million, 115,000-square-foot building will include faculty and staff offices, a vivarium to offer climate-controlled zoology research opportunities and new space for the Museum of the Earth Sciences and the RU Planetarium. EYP, one of the nation’s top-performing green design firms, is in charge of the project.

Patrick Patterson, Bobbie Grimes, Orion Rogers, and President Kyle

From left are Patrick G. Patterson, president of Novozymes; Bobbie Grimes, business systems specialist at Novozymes; and RU Dean Orion Rogers and President Penelope Kyle, who accepted Novozymes' gift for the university's new Center for the Sciences.

Orion Rogers, dean of Radford University's College of Science and Technology, gave an overview during the ceremony, describing the location of labs, classrooms offices and other facilities that will be housed in the Center for the Sciences.

"This 115,000-square-foot facility will inspire our students and visitors to join us in our passions of teaching and research," Rogers said.

Before the ceremony, 24 participants in Radford University's Summer Bridge Program toured the Novozymes lab and conducted scientific experiments with some of the company's scientists. Summer Bridge is a weeklong residential camp that provides an opportunity for rising sophomore, junior and senior high school girls to study science, technology and mathematics in a university setting.

Many of the girls attending Summer Bridge do so on scholarships provided by corporate sponsors such as Novozymes. This year, Novozymes contributed $25,000 to Summer Bridge, providing three scholarships and creating the Novozymes Microbiology and Physiology Track.

"I know it's 2012, but we're still not beyond young women feeling like they can't do as well in the sciences and math and technology as young men," Kyle said. "The Summer Bridge Program allows these young women in your facility today to feel more comfortable and feel like they can excel."

About Novozymes Biologicals:
Based in Denmark with locations around the world, including Salem, Novozymes applies biotechnology to improve the use of resources in more than 40 industries globally. The company offers the leading technology platform for bioethanol production. Within the biofuels industry, Novozymes' enzyme technology helps unlock the fuel potential of starch crops and biomass.

Back to RU Today