Laboratory of
Coming to Carolina Chemistry...
Over the past 20 years, Morehead Labs has seen
tremendous progress in instructional innovation.
Since the building first opened in 1986, thousands
of students have walked through its doors and ben-
efited from the best Carolina Chemistry has to offer
in undergraduate laboratory education. Today, more
than 5,000 students from across the university are
enrolled in undergraduate chemistry lab courses
annually.
The Lab of the Future rep-
resents our vision for next
generation undergraduate
chemistry research pedago-
gy at UNC Chapel Hill...
Lab courses are being created and redesigned to
foster collaboration among our students. Course-
based Undergraduate Research Experiences,
CUREs, are a new platform that enable students to
design experiments and learn skills to tackle cut-
ting-edge research questions. This is real research,
not step-by-step procedures in lab manuals that
have been performed by thousands of students be-
fore. Besides answering novel questions, a CURE
has four other characteristics: 1, there are chances
for students to fail and try again; 2, students take
ownership of their project; 3, there is meaningful
collaboration with peers; and 4, students communi-
cate their findings outside the classroom.
20 | CHEMISTRY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA
Effective twenty-first century teaching requires
updated facilities. Through $1M support from the
College of Arts & Sciences, the Lab of the Future is
being designed to align with the learning and teach-
ing environment of today’s chemistry labs. Key fea-
tures include:
• Collaboration stations that accommodate stu-
dent groups
• Maximized sight lines throughout the space
• Ventilation stations for each student pair de-
signed to accommodate a digital notebook
• Windows between the classroom and the corri-
dor to maximize natural light and make chemis-
try more accessible, not something that is hid-
den away
• 90” multimedia display for instructor use
• 70” multimedia displays around the perimeter
for student collaboration
• Removable digital tablet control panel in wall
with docking station
• Flexible exhaust capabilities for future instru-
mentation
The Lab of the Future represents our vision for
next generation undergraduate chemistry research
pedagogy at UNC Chapel Hill. Plans are still in early
stages, but the path forward is one we cannot walk
alone. The support of our alumni and friends will
be critical to success and we look forward to work-
ing together to maintain UNC Chemistry’s national
leadership in undergraduate chemistry education.
| CHEM.UNC.EDU