A Lasting Gift For Science

In 1921 Jesse Bierman was a student studying at The University of Montana's Flathead Lake Biological Station. She fondly recalled when the station's founder, biologist Morton Elrod, demanded, "Bierman, get out there and figure out what killed that old pine tree!"

Jack Stanford, the station's current director, says Bierman learned the tree was killed by beetles and other factors. He says that summer of learning on the shores of Flathead Lake changed the trajectory of her life.

The Flathead Valley native became interested in ecology -- the study of nature and human responses to natural phenomenon. This led to an important career as a pediatrician, teacher and administrator in which Bierman became a pioneer in the field of maternal and child health care, as well as a world-class researcher.

Bierman never forgot UM's unique biological station, however, and in the waning years of her life she used her estate to create an endowed professorship, ensuring the station would always be directed by a world-renowned scientist.
Stanford, who became the first Bierman Professor of Ecology in 1986, says of his benefactor: "She exemplifies how a person can return to her roots philanthropically and make a big difference."

Stanford has led the world in unraveling the complex biological food webs tied to river systems, especially the areas beneath waterways where stoneflies, salamanders and other unique creatures live. He also is the chief watchdog for beautiful Flathead Lake, and his station's research projects now encircle the Pacific Rim from California to the Russian Far East and Korea.

He says Bierman's gift was the catalyst that sparked an influx of research funding to the station in recent decades. "When she made the gift, we might have had a few hundred thousand dollars per year in extramural research," he says. "Today it's almost $4 million. She has left a permanent mark. The Jesse M. Bierman professorship will always be here."

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