Sept. 4, 2012
For Immediate release
For more information, contact Lance Olson at 77-4230 or Kayla Retzer at 774-4222

 WSC Science Center grand opening set Thursday, Sept. 6

 WILLISTON, N.D. - Williston State College is pleased to announce the grand opening for its new science addition, which is located on the north end of Stevens Hall. The event will be held at 4 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 6. A short program is planned, with light refreshments, self-guided tours and giveaways to follow.

 The new science center has replaced the old labs, which were original to the building that was built in the late 1960s.

 "Those labs had the original plumbing, which was getting pretty iffy, and all the tiles had asbestos. It was definitely time for an upgrade," said Lance Olson, assistant professor of math and science, and math and science department chair. "Very few buildings, when they are 50 years old, are not in need of upgrades. We had a choice between renovating or building an addition - this was just a wise choice."

 The new addition is 10,000 square feet and upgraded the college from three laboratories to four, all of which feature state-of-the-art technology and equipment.

 "We had three labs before - physics, chemistry and biology; now we have four - an engineering lab, as well as biology, anatomy and chemistry," Olson explained.

 There are also six offices for the instructors in the science department.

 Cost of the addition came in at $3.5 million, with $2.9 million coming from the state and another $600,000 to be raised by the WSC Foundation.

 "This new center is really nice," Olson said. "All the labs are very teacher-friendly and student-friendly. The grand opening is going to be a good time for everyone and I encourage the public to come and check it out."