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On Oct. 23, 2000, President
Eugene P. Trani announced a major gift from Mrs. Inger
Rice. This generous donation
included 343 acres of land between a 70-acre lake on the
north bank of the James River, southeast of Richmond, between
Berkeley and Shirley plantations. Located on one of the country’s
most ecologically and culturally significant rivers, the
Inger and Walter Rice Center for Environmental Life Sciences
will be both a nationally recognized living laboratory for
VCU Life Sciences and the headquarters for the Virginia Rivers
Initiative.
The Rice Center affords an unprecedented opportunity
to effectively focus a wide range of academic and outreach
initiatives in
the environmental life sciences. VCU’s existing strength,
together with the resources of collaborating institutions,
will merge with the Rice Center’s unique character
and location to establish the following nationally recognized
initiatives:
Research and Scholarship
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Serve as the headquarters for the Virginia Rivers
Initiative (VRI).
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Support laboratory and field research by VCU scientists
and external colleagues.
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Host a major annual named conference on site for
90-100 leading scientists and scholars focused on
large rivers research.
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Education
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Support VCU’s interdisciplinary Life Sciences
courses and curricula.
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Provide courses in VCU’s Department of Biology
and Center for Environmental Studies that include
on-site experience.
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Add new field-based courses to the curriculum,
specifically to take advantage of the Rice Center.
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Outreach
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Develop environmental curricula for year-round and
summer programs for local school districts to enhance
science education at the K-12 level.
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Provide training, continuing education and recertification
programs in the biological and environmental sciences
for K-12 teachers.
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Develop partnerships with local, state and federal
agencies to present public workshops and programs
to raise community awareness of environmental issues
and stewardship.
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Ultimately, the Rice Center will provide VCU students
and faculty with a living laboratory in which to study
the environment in a variety of ways. It will offer rich
and unique learning experiences to local and regional schools
and community groups as part of VCU Life Sciences’ public
education program. This property, rife with natural resources
and wildlife, will enable the university to create a world-class
environmental life sciences program.
www.vcu.edu/rice
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