Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

TAMU Plant Pathology and Microbiology Building Opens

  • 11/12/19

COLLEGE STATION, TX – An initiative begun during the 2012-2013 academic year led Texas A&M University’s (TAMU) College of Agriculture and Life Sciences to declare five grand challenges of agriculture. Three of those—“Feeding Our World,” “Improving Our Health,” and “Protecting Our Environment”—were specifically called out by Sandy Pierson, professor and head of the Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, during the groundbreaking ceremony for the Plant Pathology and Microbiology Building two years ago. Now, with the building’s official grand opening in late October, the department can enhance its collaborative efforts with the Institute for Plant Genomics and Biotechnology (IPGB) and other College of Agriculture and Life Sciences departments, including Entomology, Horticulture, Soil and Crop Sciences, Biochemistry and Biophysics, Ecosystem Sciences and Management, and Wildlife and Fishery Sciences.

Texas A&M Plant Pathology 200

The new building provides generic, flexible labs with the capabilities necessary to support research as it evolves. Its 84,000 square feet includes two plant pathology instructional labs, one bio-environmental instructional lab, teaching support spaces, 20 general research spaces with associated support areas, an integral greenhouse, two multipurpose seminar rooms, one multipurpose flat-floor auditorium, and administrative offices. Its placement adjacent to the Horticulture/Forest Science Building, and near other related research departments and facilities, strengthens and enhances opportunities for cross-disciplinary collaboration among faculty and students.

The building, which will serve as the new home of the Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology as well as the Bioenvironmental Sciences (BESC) program, was planned and designed by Flad Architects in collaboration with architect of record Randall Scott Architects.

Featured

  • UT System Approves First Funds for New Campus

    The University of Texas System Board of Regents recently approved funds to build the first facility of a new campus in far west Fort Worth, Texas, according to university news. UTA West will serve as a branch of the University of Texas at Arlington and is scheduled to open in fall 2028.

  • Northeastern University Breaks Ground on New Housing Community

    Northeastern University recently announced the groundbreaking of a new student housing community on its campus in Boston, Mass., according to a news release. The university is partnering with American Campus Communities (ACC) for development of the project, which will have the capacity for 1,200 students and has a scheduled completion date of fall 2028.

  • University of Illinois Moves Forward with College Sports’ Largest Digital Scoreboard

    The University of Illinois in Champaign, Ill., recently announced a series of upgrades to Gies Memorial Stadium that will include the largest scoreboard in college sports, according to a news release.

  • Zurn Elkay Releases 2025 Sustainability Report

    Zurn Elkay Water Solutions recently announced the release of its annual sustainability report, according to a news release. The 2025 report discusses the organization’s efforts to maintain good environmental stewardship and the solutions provided in helping customers meet sustainability goals.