Bentley’s upcoming renovation of one of its oldest classroom buildings, Jennison Hall, has resulted in an unexpected benefit for Massachusetts science teachers – free science equipment. To get ready for equipment upgrades and new lab and office space, Bentley’s Natural and Applied Science (NAS) dept. lab coordinators reviewed nearly 50 years’ worth of accumulated equipment and lab supplies that will be no longer used in Bentley classrooms.  The dept. organized a major initiative to donate the surplus science teaching supplies to K-12 schools across Massachusetts.

“Rather than fill dumpsters with our excess gear, we wanted to find a way to donate surplus materials to K-12 schools who struggle to fund their science programs,” says department chair of Natural and Applied Sciences Rick Oches.  “The feedback we received was overwhelmingly positive and teachers were thrilled to have equipment that wasn’t otherwise available to them such as glassware, spectroscopes, microscopes, balances, mineral and rock samples,  magnets, and anatomical models.”

The dept. evaluated all requests from local schools and with the help of the Massachusetts Association of Science Teachers (MAST), the NAS team distributed supplies to teachers from middle and high schools in 66 different Massachusetts communities.