A New Student Cabin for Women

TOGETHER, we are going to build a NEW STUDENT CABIN at the Itasca Biological Station and Laboratory!

Constructed more than 50 years ago, Student Cabin #30 had deteriorated to the point that it was condemned and demolished during the fall of 2004. The new Student Cabin (designated cabin #27) will have its foundation laid in the summer of 2005 and completed with your help in September. The College of Biological Sciences plans to enlist the community of the friends of Itasca, our students, faculty, staff, and alumni, to build this new student cabin. Our construction effort is modeled after the Habitat for Humanity*, where volunteer labor and donations of money and materials make it possible to build a simple, decent home in partnership with the owner.

As a consequence of dwindling state support for the University, the College of Biological Sciences has not recently had funds to invest in restoration or upgrading of facilities at Itasca. Instead, the College has focused its resources on maintaining and expanding the high-quality programs delivered at Itasca. The purpose of this project is to use our own human resources and some private donations to support our academic programs by replacing one of the buildings on campus.

Another goal of this project is to build a sense of community within the College and across the University. Working together as part of a construction crew is a great way to build teamwork and spirit among the friends and associates of Itasca while simultaneously contributing to the future well-being of students at the Station.

Student Cabin #27 will be a bunk style cabin built near the other women’s living facilities at Itasca. Although the old cabin was on the men’s side of the campus (the old site is needed for green space!), the new cabin will be located on the women’s side because we simply have more women enrolling in the biological sciences at the University. They deserve it!

Cabin #27 will be a relatively simple one-room building with a unique interior design that separates the internal space by partial walls for privacy and for quiet study. The cabin will also have a central area with a large table for group study and socializing. Its interior will be finished with beautiful native hardwoods harvested from trees in the region. Its exterior will be half round siding to simulate the turn-of-the-century log cabin flavor of Itasca State Park. The cabin will also include a half-bath.

In order to significantly cut the costs of construction, the resident maintenance manager at Itasca will act as general contractor for the project. The Station's expert in-house carpenters will undertake most of the preliminary labor and the finishing work. Director Dave Biesboer, Associate Director Jon Ross, and resident manager Charlie Schmidgall will lead volunteer construction crews to build as much of the building as possible over two weekends in September.

Construction of Student Cabin #27 will cost approximately $50,000 for excavation, construction of the foundation, and basic plumbing, electrical work, and materials. How will this project be funded? The first $10,000 is a challenge grant from the Professor Thomas Morely Estate. We hope to have your help, either as a laborer or a donor of cash or both, to complete this project by the end of 2005 for use by students during the academic year of 2006.

*This project is not officially affiliated with the Habitat for Humanity organization.