George M. Bateman Physical Sciences Center

The George M. Bateman Physical Sciences Center, wings A-H, is where students learn about physics, astronomy, chemistry, biochemistry and mathematics. Students can view meteorites that fell to the Earth—and moon rocks that came by spaceship.

The center is named for George M. Bateman, the first faculty member with a doctoral degree to be hired at Arizona State Teachers College. Hired by President A.J. Matthews in 1927, Bateman had a daunting assignment: develop the entire science program for the college. There were no college-level courses in biology, chemistry or physics at the time. He taught at ASU for 41 years. As chairman of the college athletic board, he helped guide the construction of Sun Devil Stadium and Packard Stadium.