Stemag Ag, Alabama, Auburn, Auburn University, Board Of Trustees, Complex, Dean, Ed Thomas, Facility, Funchess, Jimmy Sanford, Kay Ivey, Parker, President Roberts, Ribbon Cutting, Samford — A flyover view of the brand-new STEM+Ag Complex. (Auburn University)

Auburn University just marked a historic milestone on Friday, Oct. 23, hosting the grand opening for its new $224 million STEM + Agricultural Sciences Complex.

Located at 305 W. Samford Ave., this state-of-the-art facility spans over 265,000 gross square feet, making it the largest research construction project in Auburn University’s history.

Auburn officials built this complex with the intention of bringing STEM and Agriculture students together in a collaborative environment to learn from each other and foster cross-disciplinary research and innovation.

What’s inside the new facility?

Img 9727 Ag, Alabama, Auburn, Auburn University, Board Of Trustees, Complex, Dean, Ed Thomas, Facility, Funchess, Jimmy Sanford, Kay Ivey, Parker, President Roberts, Ribbon Cutting, Samford — Inside a classroom in Narendra K. Govil Hall / (Betsy Nearn)

Img 9739 Ag, Alabama, Auburn, Auburn University, Board Of Trustees, Complex, Dean, Ed Thomas, Facility, Funchess, Jimmy Sanford, Kay Ivey, Parker, President Roberts, Ribbon Cutting, Samford — Inside a classroom in Narendra K. Govil Hall / (Betsy Nearn)

Replacing aging campus facilities like Parker Hall and Funchess Hall, the new complex consists of three interconnected buildings that bring together six departments from the College of Agriculture and the College of Sciences and Mathematics (COSAM).

Each building contains:

Teaching labs
Research labs
Student study hubs
Collaborative lounge areas
Faculty offices

“Bringing together people and their work and their pursuit of knowledge and discovery can help them solve problems together.”
Christopher Roberts, Auburn University president

Designed to foster spontaneous interactions between disciplines, the complex brings together fields like crop and soil science, horticulture, biological sciences, chemistry, geosciences and mathematics.

Investment supported by the state

The groundbreaking project received significant financial support from state leadership, highlighting Alabama’s commitment to advancing scientific research and workforce development.

The complex was backed by $50 million in state funding allocated through Public School and College Authority Projects by Gov. Kay Ivey.

For Jimmy Sanford, President Pro Tempore of the Auburn Board of Trustees, the opening directly reflects the university’s core purpose as a land-grant institution.

“Our people, in these places together reflect Auburn’s land-grant mission: to provide the resources and environment necessary for an excellence of teaching, discovering and extension of practical problem-solving research. More importantly, the enhancement of a student experience will be the utmost.”
Jimmy Sanford, President Pro Tempore of the Auburn Board of Trustees

A special milestone for science at Auburn

Img 9754 2 Ag, Alabama, Auburn, Auburn University, Board Of Trustees, Complex, Dean, Ed Thomas, Facility, Funchess, Jimmy Sanford, Kay Ivey, Parker, President Roberts, Ribbon Cutting, Samford — President Roberts cutting the ribbon to welcome Auburn University’s brand-new STEM+Ag Complex. / (Betsy Nearn)

The grand opening comes at a historic time for science programs on campus.

Dr. Edward “Ed” Thomas Jr., Dean of the College of Sciences and Mathematics, noted that opening the complex is especially fitting as COSAM celebrates its 40th anniversary.

He emphasized the immense value of “bringing disciplines together to learn from people whose expertise are different than their own.”

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