New Lab Opening at St Benedict's

Published on isbi School News dated Tuesday 4th of October 2011

On Tuesday 20th September St Benedict's School was proud to officially open the Bowen Laboratory, named in honour of Mr Evan 'Buzz' and Mrs Joan Bowen, wonderful supporters and benefactors of the School for over thirty years.

Headmaster Chris Cleugh said, in his welcoming address, 'This latest project provides us with a state-of-the-art laboratory with its own preparation room. We have a fantastic science team of teachers and technicians and they will make sure that the laboratory is used to give pupils of all ages the opportunity to experience more challenging and exciting practical work. The project is also a testimony to the dedication and skill of our Properties Service Team who did the majority of the work.'

The event started with Lower Fourth pupils showing off their skills to invited guests. Ellie Scott, Rachel de Cintra and Olivia Smith were demonstrating tests for the presence of glucose, starch and proteins. Ciaran Jordan was looking at different indicators and set himself the challenge of trying to reproduce the colours of the rainbow in a set of test tubes. Jess Miles-Kingston had his own rainbow in a burette and Ieuan Beetham was looking at common household items and establishing whether they were acidic or alkaline. Theo Byrne turned his back on colour changes to determine neutralisation, preferring to rely on computers. The datalogger, monitoring both pH and temperature, enabled him to determine the exact equivalence point.

Father Abbot, Rt Rev Martin Shipperlee OSB, then led the Blessing Service and Mr Evan 'Buzz' Bowen unveiled the commemorative plaque. A rousing rendition of the school hymn 'Reigning in Glory' fittingly rounded off the formal part of the evening.