New Chemistry labs added to 1500 building

Mt. Hood’s chemistry labs have been due for a face-lift for a while, and as of fall term, they just got one.
Science Lab Coordinator Brenda Wise, a science student herself two decades ago, said the labs hadn’t been changed since the 1970’s. The new remodel spans the whole upper floor of the 1500 building, classrooms that will now be used for biology, chemistry, and physics labs.
These new labs are no chump change, either.
“There are a lot of city ordinances for structures like this,” said Wise, of the detail work required for chemistry labs. “It takes a lot of time to put these things together.”
The remodel was originally conceived in 2011, by Wise, Cory Houston and then-staff member Clyde Jensen. Jensen especially was a big influence in designing the classrooms to avoid the typical desks-in-a-grid, accompanied by slabs of gray concrete, layout.
“It’s about how stimulated are you in this space? How engaging is the space?” said Wise. “How much potential does the space have to support your needs for that learning experience? What’s the aesthetic?
“In 1998 when I was a student here, and when I was taking chemistry, I was the only super-nerd in my lab section that was totally stoked to spend four hours in a dingy, institutional-green-splattered-wall, dilapidated-cabinetry space,” continued Wise. “Why? Because I didn’t really care. It was all about touching the glass, about doing the chemistry. But there were people in my lab section who were like, ‘I can’t believe you’re so excited, this is such a drag.’
“Working here for a long time I’ve seen that happen year after year after year,” she said.
The new labs should offer a more livable working environment to students, with spaces for backpacks, new amenities, and even a homemade vacuum filtration system, which was a stumbling block in years past. Whole chem lab classes had to flee due to flooding from inefficient filtration, said Wise.
“I had the dean in here on his knees in a suit with his finger in the dike one day, no kidding. That’s how bad it was.”
All of MHCC’s science instructors except for one have a doctorate degree, and are exceptionally skilled at what they do, according to Wise. Some have kept running lists of (potential) labs that were previously not possible, she noted.
“This remodel was so critical,” she said. “They (the staff) have done very well with nothing for a very long time.”