The Institute for Environmental Studies
Rodney & Bertha Fink Environmental Studies Field Laboratory & Conservancy
Dr. & Mrs. Fink's donation featured in the Spring/Summer 2008 edition of FOCUS Magazine.
In October, 2007, WIU received a gift of land from Dr. Rodney Fink, emeritus Dean of the former College of Applied Sciences and Mrs. Bertha Fink, a Western alumna and former instructor of health sciences. The 77 acre property, now known as the Rodney and Bertha Fink Environmental Studies Field Laboratory and Conservancy is located approximately 3 miles west of WIU’s campus in Macomb, IL, and contains almost ½ mile of East LaMoine River frontage. The land is currently held in three United States Department of Agriculture conservancy agreements.
Click here for additional information on the Fink’s gift to WIU.
Map of the Fink Field Laboratory & Conservancy
(courtesy of the WIU GIS Center)
Key features of the Field Laboratory include:
- Proximity to campus.
- Location allows undergraduate and graduate students to become engaged in “hands-on” applications that complement classroom studies.
- Unrestricted water access. Uninterrupted collection of aquatic data over a protracted period of time.
- Multidisciplinary opportunities.
- A variety of terrestrial and aquatic habitats (including recovering prairie) provides opportunities for students from many academic backgrounds to work both individually and in multidisciplinary teams.
- Representative examples of groups at WIU who are involved in multidisciplinary studies include: the Departments of Biological Sciences, Geology, & Geography; the Geographic Information System Center, and the Institute for Environmental Studies.
- Enhancement of field-based capabilities.
- Resources at the site compliment and expand on WIU’s existing field education and research facilities: the Alice L. Kibbe Life Science Station and the Ira & Bertha T. Post Wildlife Sanctuary.
A pool on the east Lamoine River
(photo by L. Dean, October 2007).
Recovering prairie and hardwood forest
(photo by L. Dean, October 2007).
The Institute for Environmental Studies
301 Tillman Hall • 1 University Circle
Macomb, IL 61455-1390 • IES@wiu.edu
Phone: 309/298-1632