A renewed partnership with the Mississippi River

The former Polish Heritage Lodge on Prairie Island will become a river field station for SMU science students and teachers.

Situated on the banks of the scenic Mississippi River, Saint Mary's University has both the opportunity and the responsibility to promote the ongoing vitality of the river and its surrounding communities. The university has, once again, found a new way to positively contribute to the river and its environs, with the just-completed purchase of the Polish Heritage Lodge on Winona’s Prairie Island. Saint Mary's has a long and rich legacy of engaging with the river, and this purchase is another sign of the university’s commitment to enhancing and growing the science programs in Winona.

The new SMU “river field station” will give us direct access to the Mississippi and close proximity to the natural aspects and human activity defined by the waterway. The facility will allow for expanded environmental sciences programming for faculty, staff and students, and for regular river-related programs that will benefit the larger community. The new field station is situated in an area blessed with natural resources and nearby land and water management projects. Current plans are for the building to house the natural resource-focused staff of GeoSpatial Services, as well as provide space for research and activities of SMU environmental sciences faculty and both undergraduate and graduate students.