Research Facilities

College Research Facilities

William C. and Ruth Ann Dewel Microscopy Facility

The William C. and Ruth Ann Dewel Microscopy Facility serves undergraduate, graduate students and faculty at Appalachian State University offering a wide variety of services in light and electron microscopy and image analysis. The CAS Microscopy Facility supports both research and teaching, and provides instruction and assistance on the use of state of the art imaging equipment.

College of Arts & Sciences Vivarium

The College of Arts & Sciences is committed to providing the Appalachian academic community with a safe, clean, humane, and efficient Animal Resource Facility. For information on the scope of activities, please consult the Vivarium Facility User’s Manual (274 KB, PDF).

Computation & Visualization Lab

The Visualization Lab is an interdisciplinary computer lab which provides high-end processing and graphic rendering capabilities in support of education, research and outreach activities. The lab is located on the second floor of Rankin Science West.

Dark Sky Observatory

Appalachian State University's Dark Sky Observatory is the research facility used by faculty and their students to conduct observational research in astrophysics. It is equipped with four telescopes, each used regularly for CCD imaging and photometry, with spectrographic instrumentation also available at the 32-inch.

Rankin Observatory

Rankin Observatory is the instructional facility on the main App State campus and is used for teaching advanced undergraduate astronomy courses in observational techniques. The RSO is next to the rooftop GoTo Lab Facility, used in Introductory Astronomy courses.

I.W. Carpenter, Jr. Herbarium

The Herbarium at App State contains approximately 29,000 specimens. The three main functions of the facility are teaching, maintenance of vouchers and development of a research herbarium with a focus on the flora of the Southern Appalachians.

Greenhouse

The Biology Department maintains the Greenhouse and Conservatory which supports a wide variety of outreach, teaching, basic and applied research efforts and holds more than 800 species across more than 100 families in plant inventory.

Other Research Labs

In addition to the Microscopy Lab and Vivarium, members of the science faculty maintain their own individual labs for research, usually involving both graduate and undergraduate students.

Grants & Research News

Elijah Thompson, collections manager in App State’s Aquatic Conservation Research Lab, holds a hellbender that was found in the Watauga River. Photo submitted

Hellbender heroes: App State team continues nearly 20 years of research to help protect NC’s giant salamanders

BOONE, N.C. — Slithering in the rocky streams and rivers of the eastern United States is a rare species of giant salamanders known as hellbenders. D...

Oliver Sullivan is a graduate student in the Master of Arts in Industrial-Organizational Psychology and Human Resource Management program. Photo submitted

SAFE Student Spotlight: Oliver Sullivan

Oliver SullivanFall 2023 SAFE Fund RecipientProject: "Perceived vs. Actual: Bridging the Gap in the Understanding of Psychology Majors’ Skills"Olive...

Maggie Vaughn is a senior biology major from Nebo. Photo submitted

SAFE Student Spotlight: Maggie Vaughn

Maggie VaughnFall 2023 SAFE Fund RecipientProject: "Toward an Improved Synthesis of Dental Adhesives"Maggie Vaughn, a senior biology major from Nebo, ...

App State senior Temitayo Olofintuyi, left, a Beemon research team member and computer science major from Greensboro, and Dr. Rahman Tashakkori, the Lowe’s Distinguished Professor of Computer Science in App State’s Department of Computer Science, inspect two Beemon Hive Monitoring Systems on App State’s Boone campus. Tashakkori and his research team received a grant for over $640,000 from NCInnovation to commercialize four parts of the Beemon Hive Monitoring System. Photo by Chase Reynolds

App State team’s beehive monitoring system buzzes toward market with NCInnovation support

BOONE, N.C. — At Appalachian State University, research by Dr. Rahman Tashakkori and his team is contributing to the development of an inn...

Research in the College

The College of Arts and Sciences understands the value of research for our students and faculty. We support, encourage and aid our students and faculty in their research and scholarly pursuits. For more information about research through individual departments, please visit each department website