Nucleus: A Pitzer & Scripps Colleges Partnership

Nucleus is a state-of-the-art Department of Natural Sciences center, opened in the Fall of 2024.

students walk past the arched entrance of the nucleus building on a bright day

“Community is incredibly important in the sciences. Something we talked about a lot when we were designing this building was making sure it’s a place where there is community. It really is a part of our ethos.” 

Ulysses J Sofia

Dean of the Department of Natural Sciences

Vist the Department of Natural Sciences Website
16 Teaching Labs

Including three additions that address the biggest areas of growth: an environmental science lab, a neuroscience lab, and an advanced physics lab.

About Nucleus

The Pitzer-Scripps Colleges partnership aims to invigorate, expand, and reimagine the science program for the two campuses.

The 65,000-square-foot building provides the opportunity to expand STEM course offerings, add additional faculty and act as a collaborative space for professors and students across science disciplines.


Features

students work at laptops in a lab at the nucleus
Students in one of Visiting Assistant Professor of Biology Erin Jones’ classes work side by side in one of the new laboratories in Nucleus West.
  • Collaborative Learning 
    Spaces
  • State-of-the-Art 
    Teaching Labs
  • Community Courtyards 
    & Plazas
  • Additional Classrooms &
    Tutoring Spaces
  • Scientific Rooftop
    Greenhouse
  • An Art
    Installation

 

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Photo & Video Gallery

Explore Gallery gallery_thumbnail
outside view of the completed nucleus building students interact with faculty in a lab two students look closely at a petri dish in a cellular biology lab four students sit at a collaborative table in a biology lab outside view of the nucleus west, the new wing of the Department of Natural Sciences view of the inside of an empty greenhouse artist rendering of the completed Nucleus building two studets and a professor interact in a physics lab three students sit at tables studying Construction view of the Nucleus alumni tour the Nucleus construction site

Student Voices

richard ampah wears a green tshirt and poses in front of the nucleus building
“This expansion is helping the program become more interdisciplinary. A physics professor may be working with human biology or chemistry. Science is all connected, like a spiderweb. The curriculum is very robust and more interdisciplinary than ever before.”

Richard Ampah '25

Human Biology major, Mathematics minor

Research at the Nucleus

A Star-Filled Future

Scotia Rollins '25 explains why she has a passion for space policy and planetary exploration.

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Scotia Rollins sits in front of Griffith Observatory

Professor Ethan Van Arnam Awarded NIH Grant to Seek Disease-Fighting Molecules

Ethan Van Arnam and his lab have been awarded a three-year, $400,000+ R15 grant from the National Institute of Health’s (NIH) Institute of General Medical Sciences.

Read the Story
Associate Professor Ethan Van Arnam

Codes of Life

Richard Ampah '25 is delving into machine learning and developing algorithms to help people with cerebral palsy improve the connection between their brains and bodies.

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richard ampah leans against a wall in a wallway of nucleus west

Professor Tessa Solomon-Lane Awarded CAREER Grant by National Science Foundation

Solomon-Lane’s CAREER grant, titled Early-Life Social Environments Drive Behavioral and Neural Mechanisms of Development, will fund a five-year research project beginning in May 2024.

Ready the Story
A photo collage featuring Tessa Solomon-Lane next to the fish she studies.

Looking Ahead

Man, smiling, with gray hair, wearing glasses, and patterned collared shirt.
“When students come to study science, we’re going to be able to take them, regardless of their experience or background in the sciences, and help them to successfully pursue their plans. We’re really excited about where we’re going to go and what we’re going to do with this new space.”

Ulysses J Sofia

Dean of the Department of Natural Sciences

Nucleus in the News

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The cover of Participant magazine with a photo of the front of the Nucleus science building The cover overlays an aerial view of the Nucleus.

Featured

New Participant Issue Experiments in Scientific Curiosity

From cracking the codes of life to the biology of making a difference, the spring 2025 magazine showcases the Pitzer science experience and the opening of an exciting new facility, Nucleus West.

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