Grace College opens science complex

By Alex Brown | Inside INdiana Business

Grace College in Winona Lake is celebrating the opening of its new Dr. Dane A. Miller Science Complex. The school held a dedication ceremony Friday for the $8 million facility, which includes new and renovated space, multi-purpose learning labs and specially-designed space for the Lilly Center for Lakes and Streams.

Drew Flamm, vice president of advancement at Grace College, said the "state-of-the-art facility" features updated science and mathematics classrooms and labs and would be a field trip destination for K-12 students. "Many students will enjoy field trips to the Lilly Center to see the 850-gallon hexagon aquarium and interact with the augmented reality sandbox and virtual fresh water aquarium as they learn about our region’s most valuable natural resource: water."

The complex features 22,500 square feet of renovated space and 13,000 square feet of new space, including the school's first classroom-in-the-round. 

In July, Grace College President Bill Katip and Lilly Center for Lakes and Streams Director Nate Bosch appeared on Inside INdiana Business with Gerry Dick to talk about the complex. Katip said an increased focus on the types of study that will take place at the complex is part of the changing face of liberal arts education.

"We've known our kind of graduates have gone into meaningful careers for years," said Katip. "I think just in a little more open intentional way, pairing that liberal arts, what we call our Grace core, integrated with a vocational direction, we think it's what families want, it's what employers want, but it's that combination."

You can watch the full interview by clicking on this link to the oringinal article from Inside INdiana Business.