Facilities and labs

Research

Working closely with faculty, undergraduate and graduate students have access to the latest tools and equipment for scientific research and creative design. Clark’s science, technology, design, and creative arts facilities allow for collaborative work and ensure that students have ample opportunity to get hands-on experience.

Department facilities

Goddard Library

A major renovation and restoration project has preserved the iconic Goddard Library as Clark’s academic and student hub for years to come. Located at the center of campus, the library is a place for study, research, archiving, and gathering.

Academic and student center

Center for Media Arts, Computing, and Design

A hub of creative activity on central campus, the Center aims to inspire Clarkies’ entrepreneurial thinking and development of innovative technology, with the Lux Lab maker space, game design studios, audio/video production and recording areas, and data science and analytics, network simulation, graphic design, and computer labs.

Creative hub

Lasry Center for Bioscience

Our 50,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art Cathy ’83 and Marc ’81 Lasry Center for Bioscience houses teaching laboratories, lecture halls, faculty offices, and research laboratories used by faculty and students in biology, biochemistry and molecular biology, and environmental science.

Science facilities

Little Center/Michelson Theater

Clark’s premiere performance space, the Little Center | Michelson Theater features a black box theater, state-of-the-art theatrical lighting and audio systems, classrooms, and the Riccardo & Spencer Lobby, an art gallery and intimate performance venue.

Performing arts spaces

EPIC Lab

Labs and research groups

Agricultural change

The Agricultural Impacts Research Group applies advanced earth observation technology and geospatial analytics to study the causes and consequences of agricultural change. Principal investigator: Lyndon Estes, Geography

Chemical processes and human health

The Nag Lab conducts research at the intersection of chemistry and chemical biology, aiming to harness the power of molecular recognition by peptidic and peptidomimetic macrocycles to address a diverse set of problems in human health and energy. Her research has implications for the development of drugs to fight diseases like cancer. Principal investigator: Arundhati Nag, Chemistry and Biochemistry

Child development, culture, and adversity

The Child Development Across Context Research Group examines the influence of risk and protective factors on child development across diverse ecological contexts with particular emphases on culture and adversity. Principal investigator: Ana Marcelo, Psychology

Child mental health and development

The Child and Family Research Group studies the influence of social structures such as class and racial structures on young children’s mental health and development. Principal investigator: Amy Heberle, Psychology

Climate impacts of forest change

The Biogeosciences Research Group focuses on the climate impacts of forest change; drought and disturbance impacts on ecosystems and water resources; and pathways to deep decarbonization of society. Principal investigator: Christopher A. Williams, Geography

Computer simulations of protein degradation

The Huo Group focuses on computer simulations of protein allosteric effect, intrinsically disordered proteins, and amyloid aggregate-membrane interactions, including those which can lead to Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, and type 2 diabetes. Principal investigator: Shuanghong (Sharon) Huo, Chemistry and Biochemistry

Developmental gene regulation

The Drewell Lab investigates the molecular mechanisms of developmental gene regulation in Drosophila and social insects, using experimental molecular genomic, mathematical and computational approaches. This genetic research could help scientists better understand diseases that affect human health. Principal investigator: Robert Drewell, Biology

Digital humanities

The Digital Humanities Collaborative merges technology with humanities research, leveraging digital tools for the study of history, language and literature, the arts, and culture.

Diverse families and sexualities

The Diverse Families and Sexualities Research Lab examines diverse families, including LGBTQ-parent families and adoptive-parent families, as well as the experiences of marginalized groups such as trans youth. Principal investigator: Abbie Goldberg, Psychology

Dynamics of microbial systems

Focusing on microbial communities living in water-saturated sediment, the Petroff research group investigates the dynamics by which complex microbial ecosystems organize into simple patterns. Principal investigator: Alexander Petroff, Physics

Electrochemical energy and applications

The D’Arcy Lab investigates molecular interactions and discovers new mechanistic pathways to answer pressing questions about energy and sustainability, working toward solutions that benefit our environment and society. Principal investigator: Julio D’Arcy, Chemistry and Biochemistry

Emotion regulation

The Emotion Regulation Research Lab examines the role of emotion regulation — such as distress tolerance and psychological flexibility — in psychopathology and substance use disorders. Principal investigator: Kathleen Palm Reed, Psychology

Environmental humanities

The Environmental Humanities Collaborative explores the intersection of environment, culture, and society, addressing pressing global climate challenges through an arts and humanities lens, to drive forward-thinking research, public engagement, and dynamic teaching practices.

Evolutionary functional morphology

The Evolutionary Functional Morphology Lab (or Bergmann lab) applies an integrative approach to study how phenotypes evolve and diversify, and how they function in a comparative context, focusing mostly on lizards, snakes, and frogs. Principal investigator: Philip J. Bergmann, Biology

Extraction of natural resources

The Center for the Study of Natural Resource Extraction and Society (Extractives@Clark) promotes a cross-disciplinary approach to research on resource extraction industries, infrastructure investment, energy, and agroindustry. Principal investigators: Anthony Bebbington and John Rogan, Geography; Denise Humphreys Bebbington, Sustainability and Social Justice

Forest ecology, climate, and land use

The Forest Ecology Lab focuses on the effects of climate, disturbances, and land use on mountain forest ecosystems in the U.S. and in Europe. Principal investigator: Dominik Kulakowski, Geography

Fungal evolution and genomics

The Tabima Lab identifies the patterns of genomic evolution of fungal species and populations, especially focused on the evolution, systematics, and genomics of secondary metabolism of the genus Basidiobolus, a type of fungus. Principal investigator: Javier Tabima Restrepo, Biology

Fungal evolution, taxonomy, and ecology

The Hibbett Lab studies fungal evolution, taxonomy, ecology, and functional biology, with a focus on Agaricomycetes (mushroom-forming fungi). Principal investigator: David Hibbett, Biology

Genes, proteins, and cell division

The Larochelle Lab explores the components, interactions, and environment optimal for effective cytokinesis, the final step in cell division, by studying a model organism, Dictyostelium discoideum, a cellular slime mold. Such genetic research could help scientists better understand cell division in humans. Principal investigator: Denis Larochelle, Biology

Genetics and cancer

Contributing to genetics and cancer research, the Thackeray Lab seeks to understand the mechanisms of growth factor signaling pathway regulation, using the model system Drosophila melanogaster (fruit flies). Principal investigator: Justin Thackeray, Biology

Geospatial ecosystem conservation

The Geospatial Ecosystem Conservation Lab focuses on climate and land cover change impacts on ecosystems and biodiversity through the lens of geospatial analysis, with the objective of supporting conservation planning and ecosystems management. Principal investigator: Florencia Sangermano, Geography

Higher education and student learning

The Higher Education Research Group examines college students’ learning and development, focusing on how engagement in communities of practice contributes to the gradual construction of meaning systems. Principal investigator: Nancy Budwig, Psychology

Human-environment relationships

The Human-Environment Regional Observatory (HERO) program is a unique undergraduate-graduate-faculty experience that engages in research on human-environment relationships in Massachusetts. Faculty: Deborah Martin and John Rogan, Geography

Ideology and intergroup violence

The Ideology and Intergroup Violence Lab at Clark University investigates the ideological foundations of violence at multiple levels of analysis (the individual and society), while also identifying ways to reduce violence and discrimination. Principal investigator: Andrew Stewart, Psychology

Intergroup conflict and cooperation

The Research Group in Intergroup Conflict and Cooperation examines different aspects of peoples’ experiences of collective violence and oppression, and their resistance. Principal investigator: Johanna Vollhardt, Psychology

Intersectionality, stigma, and health

The Intersectionality, Stigma, and Health Lab examines the connection between stigma and health on an individual, interpersonal, and structural level. Principal investigator: Nicole Overstreet, Psychology

Landscape monitoring

The Landscape Monitoring Research Group focuses on biophysical remote sensing of terrestrial ecosystems, biogeography and landscape ecology, GIS, data uncertainty and visualization, land cover/land use change mapping and modeling, urban tree cover dynamics, and invasive species modeling. Principal investigator: John Rogan, Geography

Late medieval and early modern eras

The Early Modernists Unite Research Collaborative explores the late medieval and early modern eras in Europe, the Americas, and beyond, bringing together historians, literary and language scholars, art and music historians, philosophers, political scientists, and cultural theorists.

Learning, language, and cognition

The Learning, Language, and Cognition Lab examines cognitive development, particularly in school-aged children in school contexts, with bilingual education as a context of focus. Principal investigator: Alena Esposito, Psychology

Masculinities and mental health

The Masculinities and Mental Health Research Group examines intersections between the social construction and social learning of masculinities and the mental health of people of all genders. Principal investigator: Michael Addis, Psychology

Material structures and dynamics

This lab examines the structures and dynamics of materials in which organization of complex compositions over small-length scales occurs: high-surface-area layered, exfoliated, or mesoporous metal oxides and inorganic/organic nanocomposites. Principal investigator: Luis Smith, Chemistry and Biochemistry

Mathematical modeling and bioinformatics

The Dresch Lab focuses on modeling transcriptional regulation in fruit flies and investigates other areas that bridge the gap between mathematics, computer science and biology, including data analysis, image processing, evolutionary algorithms, and bioinformatics. Principal investigator: Jackie Dresch, Biology

Mental health, culture, and community

The Mental Health, Culture, and Community Research Program covers a range of areas relevant to mental health care disparities, including developmental psychopathology, treatment-seeking services research, and intervention development. Principal investigator: Esteban Cardemil, Psychology

Microbial ecology and evolution

The Ahlgren Lab researches the ecology and evolution of marine cyanobacteria, and the community structure of freshwater microbial communities. Principal investigator: Nathan Ahlgren, Biology

Narration, self, and identity

The Narrative Practices in Identity Research Group focuses on theoretical issues central to identity research such as agency, difference, and change. Principal investigator: Michael Bamberg, Psychology

Nervous systems development and evolution

The Meyer Lab examines cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying central nervous system development in a phylogenetically important and understudied group of animals, the annelids (segmented worms). Principal investigator: Néva Meyer, Biology

Nitrogen metabolism in marine diatoms

The Robertson Lab investigates the physiological ecology and evolution of nitrogen metabolism in marine diatoms and other ecologically important groups of marine algae. Principal investigator: Deborah Robertson, Biology

Physics of biological and energy systems

The Complex Matter and Nonlinear Physics Laboratory team researches granular matter consisting of discrete solids that interact inelastically; the physics of biological systems; physical processes such as erosion of granular matter by a fluid flow; and crumpling of thin sheets. This foundational research has implications for the fields of energy and human health. Principal investigator: Arshad Kudrolli, Physics

Plant-microbial interactions

The Jack Lab studies plant-microbe interactions in agricultural and natural systems to gain an understanding of their influence on below-ground population dynamics. Principal investigator: Chandra Jack, Biology

Polar science

The Polar Science Research Lab performs biogeochemical analyses on freshwater and seawater samples and houses multiple pieces of equipment and supplies that are routinely transported to the Arctic for remote field campaigns. Principal investigator: Karen Frey, Geography

Polymer and materials science

The Granados-Focil Lab studies the synthesis and characterization of macromolecules that exhibit selective transport properties for applications such as energy storage, building temperature regulation, carbon capture, sustainable concrete, and sensing technologies. Principal investigator: Sergio Granados-Focil, Chemistry

Protein degradation and human health

The Lazo Lab focuses on the proteolytic degradation and aggregation of proteins associated with late onset disorders including Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias and type 2 diabetes. Principal investigator: Noel Lazo, Chemistry and Biochemistry

Protein function and human health

Working at the interface of physical biochemistry and chemical biology, the Spratt Lab seeks to understand how proteins carry out their functions at the molecular level, research with implications for the development of drugs to fight cancer and other diseases. Principal investigator: Donald Spratt, Chemistry and Biochemistry

Relationship and marital health

The Center for Couples and Family Research aims to produce cutting-edge clinical research on intimate relationships and to develop focused interventions to promote relationship and marital health. Principal investigator: James Córdova, Psychology

Scanning tunneling microscopy and fundamental physics

Using scanning tunneling microscopy, the Boyer Lab studies the fundamental physics underlying low-dimensional materials and seeks to understand atomic-scale changes through temperature-induced phase transitions. Principal investigator: Michael Boyer, Physics

Sexual selection, ecology, and evolution

To answer fundamental questions about biodiversity, the McCullough Lab studies the costs and benefits of sexually selected traits and how and why they differ among populations and species. Principal investigator: Erin McCullough, Biology

Social insects in agroecosystems

The Mathis Lab combines observational studies, manipulative field experiments, chemical ecology techniques, and lab experiments to examine the dynamics of complex species interactions and how they impact agriculture/managed systems. Principal investigator: Kaitlyn Mathis, Biology

Superconductors and DC microgrids

The Agosta Lab conducts physics research involving renewable energy, specifically lower-dimensional superconductors in very high magnetic fields, direct-current (DC) microgrids, and heat transfer in gas boundary layers. Principal investigator: Charles Agosta, Physics

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