History
In May 1999, the University Board of Regents approved creation of a new interdisciplinary science unit, the Life Sciences Institute (LSI). The ideas for the LSI grew from a report of a commission tasked by UM President Lee C. Bollinger (1996-2001) to plan bold steps for life sciences at Michigan. The Regents approved the construction of a new $100 million open-design wet lab building and dedicated an additional $130 million for the Institute's start-up and endowment funding. Construction on the Institute began in September 2000 and was completed in September 2003.
The site chosen for the LSI was a previously underused parcel that stands at the juncture of Central Campus and the Medical Center. This site, now called the Palmer Campus, also includes: an Undergraduate Science Building containing high-tech science classrooms and offices for programs that support students studying science; and the Palmer Commons, a sophisticated conference and meeting center which also houses the University's Bioinformatics Program. All three buildings are tied together by a public plaza that forms a new pedestrian thoroughfare connecting the Central and Medical campuses.
The LSI is independent of any particular school or college but works in partnership with all the deans and chairs of relevant academic units to recruit faculty and build programs and resources. The Institute is led by a director who reports directly to the president and provost. It is guided by an executive committee defined by Regental bylaw and representing the scienfitic leadership on the campus.
Jack E. Dixon served as Institute Director until July 2002. Biochemist Mary Sue Coleman became University president in September 2002, and in one of her first acts, she named cell biologist Alan R. Saltiel director of the Institute. A charter faculty of leading U-M researchers was also established to jump-start the LSI’s recruitment efforts. Today the Institute is home to 25 faculty-led teams spanning 13 departments and three schools and colleges of the U-M.
More LSI History
- View a timeline detailing the genesis of LSI
- Download the LSI Grand Opening Convocation Keynote Address - The Unified Biology and the Future of Life by E. O. Wilson (628kb PDF)
