Facilities

The Natural Science Division maintains a Central Instrument Facility that is available for use by all departments within the division. This facility houses some of the more specialized instrumentation that has broad applications among the disciplines. All departmental equipment is available for student use. Training in the use of technical instrumentation provides our students with essential experience that provides a solid foundation for graduate research or direct entry into the job market.  New instrumentation is routinely added through funding from grants and other sources. The current complement of instrumentation includes the following:

  • Gas Chromatograph/Mass Spectrophotometers (GC-MS);
  • UV Visible Spectrophotometers;
  • Standard Thermal Cyclers;
  • Real Time Thermal Cycler;
  • Licor DNA Analyzer (sequencing and AFLPs);
  • Licor Odyssey Protein Analyzer (westerns, phosphorylation studies, etc.);
  • Centrifuges;
  • High Performance Liquid Chromatographs (HPLC);
  • Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometers;
  • Infra-Red Spectrophotometers (Conventional and FT-IR);
  • Differential Scanning Calorimeter; and
  • Scanning Tunneling Microscope (STM).

Because of the personal attention given to each student, La Verne graduates have more extensive hands-on contact with modern instrumentation than do those at many larger institutions.

Microscopy

We have two microscopy facilities within the Natural Science Division.

  • The Microscopy and Imaging Center includes research grade transmission and reflectance microscopes capable of most standard modes, including phase contrast and fluorescence photomicroscopy, and a JEOL 6460LV Scanning Electron Microscope – Energy Dispersive X-ray system. The mission of this facility is to provide imaging resources for a broad range of academic programs and research projects.  Please contact Jay Jones for more information.
  • The Student Microscopy Center, housed in Mainiero 253, contains four state-of-the-art Nikon epi-fluorescence microscopes, including two compound and two stereo microscopes.  Users have access to CCD cameras that can be attached to either type of microscope.  The center also contains two computers equipped with MetaVue software for collecting and processing images taken on the microscopes.  The facility is available for students in courses such as Cell Biology, Developmental Biology, and Microbiology, and students working on senior projects.  Please contact Dr. Christine Broussard, Ph.D. for more information.

Greenhouse and Animal Care Facility

The Biology Department maintains two greenhouse facilities.  One, a 12’ X 24’ greenhouse,  is located in the main building and is attached to a prep room and animal-care facility with a modern 30 cage rodent rack with automatic watering and controlled, filtered air supply.  Additionally, there is a second 12’ X 18’ greenhouse dedicated to student and faculty research.  The greenhouses contain a taxonomically broad collection of plants chosen to demonstrate taxonomic, morphological, and anatomical diversity. The standing collection is intended to support instruction.

Montana Field Station

The Biology Department maintains a southern Montana field station located approximately 50 miles east of Missoula named Magpie Ranch/Clark Fork Field Research Station.  The facility includes a seven acre site on the Clark Fork River and laboratory and living facilities to support study and research groups of up to 20 persons.  Also located in a remote location in the Garnet Mountain Range is a 160-acre site donated to the department by former biology student Rich Base for use in field research.  Much of the value of this land lies in its remoteness and the fact that it includes mature forested areas, clear-cut zones, cliffs, ravines, and a permanent stream that is rich in plants and wildlife. This remote site is within 30 minutes travel from the station site and is regularly used for instruction and research.

The Cultural and Natural History Collection

Located in Jaeger House on the La Verne campus, the Cultural and Natural History Collection contains a broad range of  biological, geological, and anthropological specimens. The items in this collection are available for viewing during normal business hours and are routinely used for classroom instruction and special projects.

Transportation Support

The Biology Department has a  pair of four-wheel drive Suburbans that provide vital support for field courses and field trips.