MILLS COLLEGE OPENS MAJOR NATURAL SCIENCES BUILDING

ON OCTOBER 11, 2007

PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT SHIRLEY M. TILGHMAN TO

GIVE KEYNOTE ADDRESS

Oakland, CA – Creating a vigorous new interdisciplinary scientific community comprised of its departments of biology, chemistry, physics, and psychology, Mills College will debut a major 26,000-square-foot Natural Sciences Building on Thursday, October 11, 2007. The $17.2-million, two-story building is the largest structure built on campus since F.W. Olin Library was completed in 1990.

Tours of the building will be given to the media and invited guests from

8:30 to10:00 am, followed by a welcome from Mills President Janet L. Holmgren, and a keynote address by Princeton University President Shirley M. Tilghman. A world-renowned scientist and scholar with groundbreaking discoveries in genetics, President Tilghman participated in cloning the first mammalian gene and was among the experts to set the blueprint for the first Human Genome Project.

The final event of the day is a panel discussion entitled “Women in Science Leadership: Where Do We Go From Here?” led by prominent women scientists at 2:00 pm in Lisser Hall. Noted science journalist Cristine Russell, a Mills alumna and Trustee, will moderate.

The panelists are:

·        Dr. Ann Arvin, Lucile Salter Packard Professor of Pediatrics, professor of microbiology and immunology, vice provost and dean of research, Stanford University School of Medicine

·        Dr. Sandra Greer, professor of chemistry and biochemistry,

      University of Maryland

·         Dr. Ticora Jones, postdoctoral fellow, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory 

·         Dr. Lisa Urry, Letts-Villard Professor in the Natural Sciences, associate professor of biology, Biology Department chair, Mills College

The new building features four teaching laboratories, five classrooms, a research lab, and community space for interdisciplinary collaboration.

Members of the predominantly female architectural team who designed the building are: Mills Campus Architect Karen Fiene (formerly of Karen Fiene Architects), project director and co-designer; EHDD Architecture’s Jennifer Devlin, principal in charge; Kim Swanson, project manager; Sharon Nakatani, project architect; Melissa Hung, staff architect and construction administrator; and Peter Dodge, FAIA, consulting architect. The building was designed from a sustainable perspective in every facet, and is slated to achieve platinum certification as a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) building.

Mills College is a nationally renowned, independent liberal arts college offering innovative degree programs to approximately 900 undergraduate women and 500 graduate women and men. Ranked one of the top colleges in the west by U.S. News & World Report and one of the Best 366 Colleges by The Princeton Review, Mills provides a dynamic liberal arts education fostering women's leadership, social responsibility, and creativity. Nestled in the foothills of Oakland, California, on 135 lush acres, Mills was recently selected by the New York Times as one of three outstanding California colleges for students to consider.