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Touring the new Natural Sciences Building, Annemarie Holthus (’89 B.S.) could hardly believe the difference from the place where she spent her undergraduate years.

Gone were the tight spaces in the chemistry labs where bumping into others was a normal occurrence. Instead, it was bright, airy and open.

The once dark basement—which Holthus avoided except when she had to log her work onto the computers stored there—has become a friendly place with brightly colored student collaboration areas.

And she said the building has been updated to reflect not only the science of today—but also the one of tomorrow.

 “It’s impressive. They really spent the money on the equipment and on the facilities to bring it even beyond the present to the future,” said Holthus, who majored in chemistry. “There’s equipment in the new labs that I only saw once I got into my career.”

Holthus—along with her husband John (’89 B.S.) and their children Rachel, a UM-Dearborn junior, and Matthew, a UM-Dearborn freshman—were among the first to experience the Natural Sciences Building’s transformation at Friday’s grand opening.

In celebration of the $51 million Natural Science Building renovation, the Holthus family and more than 200 others gathered at the event to hear remarks from UM-Dearborn Chancellor Daniel Little, State Rep. George Darany (’78 B.A.), College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters Dean Martin Hershock (’85 B.A.) and alumnus Eric Nemeth (’85 B.A.); took guided tours of the new building, and attended a colloquium. Prior to the opening celebration, several CASL alumni gathered for a special luncheon.

Speaking in the original center of campus, near the Chancellor’s Pond, Little said the buildings surrounding the crowd were the original four campus buildings. They include the Natural Sciences Building—originally called the Science Building—constructed nearly 60 years ago.

The Natural Sciences Building was renamed this fall to better reflect the teaching, research and disciplines housed in the new building. The new building has 99,404 gross square feet of space dedicated to natural sciences instruction and research. It houses biology, chemistry, geology and environmental biology.

Little said the 1959 structure had served the UM-Dearborn community well, but with technological advancements and new rapidly emerging career opportunities, updating the original building was an important step in continuing to be a top choice for students looking for a great education in science and pre-health-related fields.

“Enrollment in our natural sciences courses was spiking, increasing 21 percent in the last five years—and for good reason. STEM jobs grew three times faster than non-STEM jobs during the past decade, and this number is expected to increase another 17 percent by 2018,” he said of the decision to renovate. “This building reflects very careful thinking on the part of the faculty in the natural sciences about the most effective teaching and learning strategies that exist in the field. It is student-centered; it encourages student-to-student collaboration; and it encourages hands-on, engaged learning. This approach will help our students gain the creativity and imagination that good work in the natural sciences requires.”

Holthus agrees. And, in addition to observing the building’s transformation, she looks forward to seeing the affect it will have on her daughter Rachel, a chemistry major.

“I chose to come here because I always heard how great the chemistry program was from my parents,” Rachel Holthus said. “I have some of the same professors they did, and I get to work in this new building just as I start my upper level lab classes. I feel very lucky.”

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