COSAM News Articles 2015 November Save the Date for Tiger Giving Day!

Save the Date for Tiger Giving Day!

Published: 11/19/2015

Join the College of Sciences and Mathematics’ alumni and friends on Dec. 1 for the first-ever Tiger Giving Day at Auburn University.

Tiger Giving Day is a 24-hour fundraising event that will highlight more than 20 projects from the schools and colleges around campus, including the purchase of a new telescope for the astronomy terrace, a new edition to the Leach Science Center.

We ask you to lend your continued support to COSAM on Dec. 1 as we raise at least $10,000 in one day to provide a telescope for the new astronomy terrace. A gift of any amount can help!

Currently, the astronomy course in the College of Sciences and Mathematics’ Department of Physics accommodates an average of 175 students each year through its astronomy laboratory based in Allison Laboratory, which is comprised of eight, eight-inch reflecting telescopes. Telescopes are stored there until needed for each evening’s class, at which time they are moved to and positioned on the sidewalk outside the building, then, after class, returned to storage. Plans to raze Allison Laboratory to make room for the new Academic Classrooms and Laboratory Complex will require the college to relocate the astronomy laboratory, as well as the department, to the Leach Science Center.

To make the Leach Science Center suitable to house both the department’s faculty and its astronomy course, the college proposes a 30,000-square-foot expansion, which will allow for increased enrollment in this popular course and other classes to be taught there as well. The expansion, part of COSAM’s continued efforts to enhance its facilities, will provide students and faculty with modern, cutting-edge spaces where they can learn and conduct research. It will allow the department to accommodate more students interested in astronomy to enroll in the course — a goal currently hampered by the Leach Science Center’s dated resources and lacking instructional space.

A new astronomical observation terrace atop this addition will enhance the learning experience of students interested in this popular area of science. Furthermore, it will be designed to help the college meet the changing learning styles of today’s students while incorporating emerging technologies and increasing class enrollment by 250 percent.

On Tiger Giving Day, the College of Sciences and Mathematics seeks to raise at least $10,000 for the purchase of one telescope for the new astronomy lab. Because they will be permanently mounted, the new telescopes will experience little wear and tear and will create possibilities for spectroscopic observations and data acquisition.

Your generous support will help continue propelling our college forward while creating new opportunities for our current and future students.

If you would like to participate in Tiger Giving Day prior to Dec. 1, please call 334.844.7780.

Check our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for more details as Dec. 1 approaches.