BOCA RATON — As Florida Atlantic University grows, so does its research.

The school announced a $2 million grant from The Marcus Foundation, founded by Bernard Marcus, on May 22. The funding will go toward the Marcus Research and Innovation Center at FAU’s lab schools — the A.D. Henderson University School and FAU High School campus in Boca Raton.

“The science, innovation and research that will occur within the Marcus Research and Innovation Center will expose and engage youth at early ages in these important fields, and could be an educational model for the rest of the country,” said Marcus, who also is the foundation’s chairman.

FAU’s Marcus Research and Innovation Center: What will it be?

The new center will add more than 12,000 square feet of STEM and research space to the schools. It will serve as a training center and incubator for current A.D. Henderson and FAU High students, a university news release said.

The labs within the center will be dedicated to bioimaging, neuroscience, ocean science, conservation and health care. In the labs, students will have access to top-tier research instruments not typically available in K-12 settings.

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“We are grateful to The Marcus Foundation for its strategic investment in our students, educators and community,” said Stacy Volnick, FAU’s interim president. “This impactful grant will facilitate the development of our students’ passions, expand our research and pioneer the critical discoveries of tomorrow.”

The center will host visiting scholars and researchers, as well as advance current research at the Marcus Neuroscience Institute at Baptist Health Boca Raton Regional Hospital and the Marcus Institute of Integrative Health at FAU’s Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine.

Who will the Marcus Research and Innovation Center benefit?

The center will be for K-12 students, meaning research can start as early as kindergarten.

It will also provide spaces to support the lab schools’ Stiles-Nicholson STEM Teacher Academy and The Cane Institute for Advanced Technologies. The academy provides experiential professional learning opportunities for students by bridging high-caliber research settings with middle- and high-school teachers. The institute is a K-12 STEM continuum, which serves as the lab schools’ epicenter for STEM education and technology transfer.

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To date, students in the lab schools’ research program have produced 78 student publications in peer-reviewed journals, six patents and more than 1,500 citations worldwide, according to the school’s release.

FAU student research includes local collaborations and beyond

Student research collaborations currently underway, according to FAU, include work with Baptist Health Boca Raton Regional Hospital, the Max Planck Society, the Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation and Technology, Jupiter Medical Center, the Wahoo Bay marine park and the Loggerhead Marinelife Center. The Marcus Research and Innovation Center will house and expand all current programs at the lab schools.

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“This generous grant will accelerate the transformational re-engineering of education already in progress at our lab schools,” said Joel Herbst, superintendent of Florida Atlantic Laboratory Schools. “The Marcus Research and Innovation Center will serve as a blueprint for developing researchers and a globally competitive workforce, as well as train the school leaders and educators of tomorrow.”

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Jasmine Fernández is a journalist covering Delray Beach and Boca Raton for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at jfernandez@pbpost.com and follow her on X (formerly Twitter) at @jasminefernandz. Help support our work. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: FAU receives $2M donation from the Marcus Foundation for research center