USA Opens Educational Outreach Expansion

The University of South Alabama (USA) has opened its $8-million, 13,000-ft² expansion on the first floor in the Educational Outreach Building of its Stokes School of Marine and Environmental Sciences. The expansion was to accommodate student growth. It added additional areas for teaching, research and student study and included an advanced environmental analytical laboratory for research and student training capable of conducting a wide range of chemical analyses, including emerging contaminants like pharmaceutical pollutants and “forever chemicals.” A 600-gallon circular aquarium featuring marine life from the Alabama coastal environment serves as a focal point in the first-floor lobby. The expansion was funded through an $8-million dollar investment from the university, state agency partners and private donors, including a $2.5-million gift from Dr. Steven and Angelia Stokes and a $2.5-million grant from the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act via the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the governor’s office.