Posted September 17, 2001

IOWA CITY -- The facility that many expect to become the world's most comprehensive river research station will be named for one of Iowa's most generous benefactors.

The Board of Regents, State of Iowa, last week approved the naming of the Lucille A. Carver River Research and Education Facility, located near Muscatine, Iowa.

The structure is being made possible in large part by a $1.2 million gift to the University of Iowa Foundation from the Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust of Muscatine. Lucille Carver is a member of the Carver Trust Board of Trustees and the widow of the late Roy J. Carver Sr., the trust's founder.

The facility will house the Mississippi Riverside Environmental Research Station (MRERS), operated by the UI College of Engineering's IIHR-Hydroscience & Engineering unit, making it the only university-affiliated, comprehensive river research station in the world.

"For many years, my mother owned a houseboat on the Mississippi," said Roy Carver J. Carver Jr., also a member of the Carver Trust board. "She has fond memories of time spent exploring this area of the river, and we thought it fitting that this facility, which is designed, in part, to emphasize the relationship between the river and the local community, should be named in her honor."

Lucille Carver attended the UI and in 1972 received the Distinguished Service Award from the UI Alumni Association. A former director of the Carver Pump Company, she currently serves as a member of the board of directors of Bandag Inc. of Muscatine and also served on the UI Foundation board from 1981 to 1985.

Overall, the Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust has contributed more than $28 million to University of Iowa projects.

In related action, the Regents approved increasing the budget for the facility from $1.2 million to just over $1.3 million to cover the unforeseen costs of removing buried debris, including refrigerators and other discarded items from the construction site at the facility.

Contact Information

Kevin Collins
Director of Development, College of Engineering
The University of Iowa Foundation
(319) 335-3305 or (800) 648-6973

Charles S. Drum
University Relations
(319) 384-0048

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