DU Builds New Future-Ready STEM Facility

New construction on the DU Campus is ushering in an exciting era of scientific discovery and opportunity. The STEM Horizons building, located near the Daniel Felix Ritchie School of Engineering and Computer Science and scheduled to open in 2027, will provide 87,000 square feet of new and renovated research, laboratory, community partnership, business incubation and hands-on learning space.

Accessibility, agility and innovation are hallmarks of DU’s long legacy of internationally renowned science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) research. DU’s overall research volume has tripled in the past decade, with faculty contributing scientific solutions to significant 21st century challenges, from climate adaptation in key environments to progress on questions of public health.

Paired with crucial renovations to the Boettcher West and Seeley G. Mudd buildings, the new STEM Horizons building ensures that faculty and every DU student will have access to the resources, advanced technologies and collaborative research environment needed for the future of STEM discovery, education and leadership in the Rocky Mountain West.

“The STEM Horizons building will create handson learning programs and open-concept laboratory spaces, allowing students of all backgrounds to explore, observe, apply and innovate STEM concepts and help them translate those experiences directly into their careers, including in science, engineering and innovation,” says Corinne Lengsfeld, senior vice provost for research and graduate education.

What’s inside STEM Horizons?

→ 87,000 square feet of new and renovated research, laboratory, community partnership, business incubation and hands-on learning space.

→ 5 new undergraduate learning laboratories— 3 lower division and 2 upper division— connected by a covered pavilion.

→ The new building and on-campus renovations will move DU closer to reaching the $300 per square foot national average for annual external research expenditures per square foot.

→ 23 life science laboratories will be upgraded to provide the high-quality research conditions scientists need to study and advance solutions for significant challenges facing our world.

→ The STEM Horizons building embodies DU’s commitment to the 4D Experience, providing students in every degree program with opportunities for applied interdisciplinary learning that prepares them for dynamic careers and lives of purpose.

Investing in innovation

The STEM Horizons building is an investment in the agile, visionary research enterprise at DU—promoting collaborative scientific discovery among faculty and innovative opportunities for all students. DU is the only private university in the Rocky Mountain West to boast an R1 designation from the Carnegie Classification of Institutions for Higher Education, reflecting research volume and excellence.

“The new life sciences complex and renovations of existing buildings will create important opportunities for innovation in the biomedical and other health related fields and bolster

This building and the research and education programs it accelerates will anchor a vibrant campus corridor for transformational science and technological development. Part of the new and renovated spaces will include a micro-industrial complex where DU faculty and students will work directly with leading bio-technology companies and start-ups across other industries, generating internship and job opportunities for students and entrepreneurial collaboration for faculty.

The STEM Horizons building is being financed in part by the University as an element of the campus master plan. The Denver Difference campaign is also bringing together DU’s philanthropic community, alumni and friends in support of this new, vibrant space of discovery on campus.

“In STEM Horizons, the DU community has an opportunity to advance the future of scientific innovation with practical applications in health, climate, technology and more,” says Val Otten, senior vice chancellor for advancement. “Philanthropic investments by alumni and donors will more firmly cement DU’s leadership in accessible STEM education and agile, exceptional STEM research in the Rocky Mountain region.”

To learn more about how your investment can power DU’s research innovation at STEM Horizons, contact Asha Holsopple, executive director of development, STEM, at 303-871-4750 or asha.holsopple@du.edu.