Earth Science SamPLE Facility Fund
put Earth Science SamPLE Facility Fund in the Gift Designation Field
The Earth Science Sample Preparation Lab and Educational (SamPLE) Facility fund has been established to upgrade, improve the safety of, and provide a sustainable financial and oversight model for the Department SamPLE facility. This lab - “the rock shop” - is vital for undergraduate research. It is typically the first facility that undergraduates work in as part of any hands-on study with Earth materials in the Earth Sciences.
The SamPLE facility houses rock crushing equipment, rock saws, sieves, polishers, ovens and hotplates, a fume hood, epoxy mounting and impregnation equipment, and a heavy liquid setup. From cutting rocks for thin sections, separating minerals for geochronologic measurements, and polishing samples for in situ analyses, the SamPLE facility acts as the crucial bridge between field and analytical activities. Over the last decade, over a hundred CU Geological Sciences undergraduates have engaged in research projects that have used this important space.
Your gift will help replace aging equipment and renovate parts of the lab. Over the long-term, we aim to support a 25% graduate student assistant from this fund to oversee the space, provide training, coordinate users, and offer mentorship to undergraduates working in the lab. This strategy would simultaneously fund a graduate student and afford them with important mentorship and management experience during their degree.
When this fund reaches $50,000, it will be converted into an endowment, providing permanent support for the SamPLE facility and thus the important student experiences that occur in this space.
Please note that there is a potential naming opportunity for this laboratory space upon a generous donation that would dramatically advance us toward the fund’s goal of attaining a financially sustainable model for the SamPLE facility.
