Science education at Linfield University received a generous boost this week thanks to a $1.6 million grant from the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust. Funds from the grant will go toward completion of a science complex on the McMinnville campus, which will provide significant new and renovated teaching and research spaces when it is finished late this year.
“This is a significant gift for Linfield and comes at a key moment as we work to open a new science complex that will benefit students and faculty for generations,” said Miles K. Davis, Linfield president. “We are humbled and appreciative of the support from the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust.”
Linfield’s science complex is a set of leading-edge science facilities, which includes the new W.M. Keck Science Center, a wholesale renovation of neighboring Graf Hall and some improvements to nearby Murdock Hall. Altogether, the project encompasses 84,000 square feet of new and updated learning, collaboration and research space. The project is scheduled for completion in December 2022.
“I’m thrilled to open the newly renovated and newly constructed spaces in our science complex, particularly as these spaces will immediately and positively impact collaboration across the scientific disciplines and promote student-faculty research,” said Joe Wilferth, dean of the Linfield’s College of Arts and Sciences. “Scientific research and science-based education are clearly on the rise at Linfield.”
Although dedicated to the sciences, the new complex will have a direct impact on students in all majors across the university. Included in the project is a tasting lab for Linfield’s wine studies program and much-needed teaching space for introductory level science courses for students pursuing degrees in nursing and education.
The M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust has a long history of supporting science education at Linfield. For more than 45 years, the Trust has awarded grants benefiting student and faculty research projects, cancer research and faculty positions in the sciences.
“For decades, we have had the opportunity to witness up close the impressive growth of Linfield’s science programs and the life-changing work and research they have inspired,” said Steve Moore, executive director of the Charitable Trust. “This new complex will provide opportunities for generations of students to engage in STEM fields in groundbreaking new ways. We are excited for what this means for the Linfield community and for our broader region and we are grateful to play a small role in helping bring this vision to life.”
The M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust was created by the will of the late Melvin J. (Jack) Murdock, who was a co-founder of Tektronix, Inc. in Beaverton, Oregon, and a resident of Vancouver, Washington. Since its establishment on June 30, 1975, with a bequest of about $90 million, the Trust has focused its grantmaking efforts primarily in five states of the Pacific Northwest: Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington where it has invested more than $1.2 billion through more than 7,800 grants.
“The Murdock Charitable Trust has been an extraordinary, long-term partner for Linfield and has provided tremendous support of our faculty members and organization, especially around support, innovation and discovery in the sciences,” said Joseph Hunter, vice president for university advancement at Linfield University.
This latest grant awarded to Linfield is among many gifts made by generous alumni and donors to support this project. Other significant donors include the W.M. Keck Foundation, namesake of the new 24,000 square foot science building; former Linfield scientist and Murdock trustee emeritus, Lynwood Swanson, and his spouse Karin; and Ken and Grace Evenstad, pioneers of the wine industry and founders of the Evenstad Center for Wine Education at Linfield.
More information about the Linfield University Science Complex and the building of the W.M. Keck Science Center is at https://campaign.linfield.edu/science/.