Trent University students, faculty, staff, board members and community partners gathered today to officially open the new Life and Health Sciences facility, and thank Peterborough MPP Jeff Leal and the Province for their significant financial support of the project.

The $17.2 million building located on the east bank will serve as a home for Trent’s Anthropology, Nursing and Psychology departments. The Provincial government invested over $9.8 million to support the project.

The new facility is physically connected to Trent’s DNA Building which houses the Forensics Sciences program, the Natural Resources DNA Profiling and Wildlife Centre, scientists from the Ministry of Natural Resources and the International Consortium on Anti-Virals (ICAV).

“The new Life and Health Sciences building will serve as a platform for Trent University to continue to build out its reputation for delivering high quality educational programs to students pursuing studies in the growing life and health sciences disciplines,” said Dr. Steven E. Franklin, president and vice-chancellor. “The Life and Health Sciences building was strategically located to have a physical link to our existing DNA building and will encompass Module D, a new home for Trent’s Biology department which is scheduled to be completed by March 2011 with tenants moving in by spring 2011.”

Dr. Franklin added that the construction project was completed on time and on budget, and commended the architect, contractor, sub-contractors, faculty and staff for their leadership.

"The province's investment of $9.8 million in Trent's new facility reflects the priority this government places on health and life sciences, and their importance to the future prosperity of this region and Ontario," said Jeff Leal, MPP, Peterborough. "The new facility has the potential of fostering even more collaborations with Fleming College, the Peterborough Regional Health Centre, and other potential partners. Ultimately, this modern facility provides a much needed new home for the Anthropology, Nursing and Psychology departments and will help Trent fulfill its primary mission to support its students, faculty and staff."

The Life and Health Sciences building contains a number of new features:

• 46,000 square feet of new space for teaching, learning and research
• 47 offices and 31 research labs – many of which are also used for teaching
• New and relocated labs for the Psychology department including the Psychology Action and Cognition (ACT) Lab to be used to understand how the brain uses sensory information to control limb and hand movements
• The Trent/Fleming Nursing Clinical Learning Centres which encompasses a number of new labs including a full simulation lab and learning program
• A series of new research labs for the Anthropology department including an archaeological lab, and archaeological chemical lab, a human palaeontology lab, a Mesoamerica lab, an Ontario lab, an early states lab, an Andean archaeology lab and material cultural lab
• New space for potential graduate programs
• A new home for Trent’s Canada Research Chair in Emotion and Health – led by Dr. James Parker, Vice President of Research and International
• Administrative offices for the departments of Anthropology, Nursing and Psychology