Lincoln University is getting a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant to help build a multipurpose agriculture building on the main campus in Jefferson City.
Majed El-Dweik, interim dean of LU's College of Agriculture, Environmental and Human Sciences, said plans for the facility are in the initial stages and no specific location for the new building has been announced.
The USDA grant is for $1,185,117.
The grant doesn't require matching funding, according to an LU news release.
The building will be the new home for Lincoln's Cooperative Research and Extension program and will house "state-of-the-art laboratories, learning space and a hall" providing the "space and technology capabilities to host conferences," the news release said.
"This is exciting news for our Lincoln University," El-Dweik said in the news release, "and it will have a positive impact on our Research and Extension activities and the learning opportunities for our students and populations we serve."
LU officials "will work with the USDA to secure additional funding in the future to create this innovative facility which will benefit not only Lincoln University, but the agricultural community around the nation," according to the news release.
As a federal land-grant university, LU is required to do research and instruction in agriculture and to provide educational programs that help the general public in agriculture and other areas. The University of Missouri-Columbia has a similar mission.
Over the years, the two schools have worked to do their research in different areas, with LU specializing in small-animal production and aquaculture.