A trio of grants by the Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust of Muscatine will further advance research areas at Iowa State University. A $745,545 grant from the Carver Trust is already being used to build a new zebrafish research facility in the Advanced Teaching and Research Building on campus. The renovated facility will help advance gene-editing research led by professor Jeff Essner and Maura McGrail, associate professor of genetics, development and cell biology. In addition, the Carver Trust has committed $200,000 to support renovations that will transform Parks Library’s first floor into a hub for student services, while expanding collaboration and study space. And a $161,290 grant from the Carver Trust will support core facility instrumentation in the Office of Biotechnology with the acquisition of a wavelength-dispersive spectrometer. The WD spectrometer will enable Iowa State to expand its materials characterization capabilities, benefiting numerous research teams working to improve the safety and performance of buildings, vehicles, computers, medical implants and other materials science innovations.