Some George Mason University students started off the spring semester in brand new, high-tech labs and classrooms. The school’s Life Sciences and Engineering Building, located at the Science and Technology (SciTech) Campus in Manassas, has officially opened.
The 132,00-square-foot, state-of-the art building includes classrooms and more than 30 different laboratory spaces for teaching, design, and fabrication. It caters to students studying in fields such as kinesiology, microbiology, chemistry, engineering, forensic science, robotics, and autonomous vehicles.
The ground floor of the building houses engineering labs and student design competition bays. These areas open onto the campus’ exterior pathways, giving students and professors a view of the work happening inside.
SciTech Campus
“Designed for rigorous hands-on learning, the Life Sciences and Engineering Building marks a major state investment in our outstanding George Mason faculty to educate and inspire our students — Virginia’s next generation of leaders, researchers, innovators, and problem solvers,” GMU President Gregory Washington said. “This facility, and the advancements it will produce, further establishes the Science and Technology Campus, and this Innovation District, as an anchor of the economic corridor that runs from Mason Square in Arlington to the Fairfax Campus to here in Manassas, further entrenching George Mason as a major driver of the prosperity of our region and state.”
Established in 1997, plans for the SciTech Campus include development of two residential and commercial town centers connected to campus. “The planned town centers will create a stronger link between the campus and the surrounding community,” said Colby Grant, director of administration and operations for the SciTech Campus. “Combined with the new Life Sciences and Engineering Building, these developments further establish the campus as a dynamic hub for science, technology, the arts, entertainment, and recreation.”
GMU is not the only Virginia college expanding its tech footprint in the area. UVA and Virginia Tech also recently opened new, state-of-the-art Northern Virginia campuses.
Feature image courtesy Evan Cantwell/George Mason University
