BOISE - A partnership between Micron and Boise State University took its next step on Thursday as officials broke ground on a new building on the university's campus.
Company executives joined university officials Tuesday afternoon for a groudbreaking ceremony on the Micron Center for Materials Research.
The $50 million building will provide space needed to continue growing expertise in manufacturing technology and cancer research, among many other fields.
The Micron Foundation pledged $25 million - the largest gift in Boise State's history - to help fund the center.
"It's an exciting opportunity for our campus to bring together researchers across the university," said College of Engineering Dean JoAnn Lighty.
"What it will really expand is the research oppurtunities in material research here at Boise State," Lighty explained. "(We're) looking at really bringing together and converging different disciplines that work in materials to make materials that are specific for applications or ones that we probably have really not even thought of using before."
Boise State's College of Engineering will operate the center, which is being constructed just west of the Engineering building on University Drive.
It is expected to be completed in the fall of 2020.
