Modernization

The University of Colorado Boulder opened the renovated Hellems Arts and Sciences Building in April of 2026. Designed by Hacker and Handprint Architecture, the $105.2 million facility houses the departments of english, history, linguistics, and philosophy, as well as the Anderson Language and Technology Center. Flexible, open classrooms will encourage active learning, adapt to new pedagogies, and support both team-based and lecture-oriented educational modalities.

The University of New Mexico is engaged in a visionary renovation of the College of Pharmacy on the institution’s North Campus in Albuquerque. Designed by Vigil & Associates and Architekton, the 96,518-sf facility is undergoing a comprehensive transformation to create a sophisticated home for future pharmacists and pharmaceutical scientists. Flexible, leading-edge classrooms and research laboratories will be accompanied by collaboration venues that bring learners, faculty, and community partners together.

The University of Oklahoma is planning the $450 million Palace Project to reimagine the Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman. Designed by Populous, the renovation of the west side will intentionally decrease seating capacity by 7,000 to add 47 suites, 64 loge boxes, and approximately 4,000 club seats. The fan experience will be elevated by improved sightlines, a more spacious environment, ADA-compliant seating, and new gathering spaces, including six premium club and lounge venues. 

Every new building is a gamble on the future, but some are bigger bets than others. These days, one of the highest-stakes wagers campus planners must make is how much to upgrade their high-performance facilities to meet tomorrow’s demand. It isn’t an easy call. Once relegated to distant basements, computer labs are now being built right in the heart of campus, a reflection of their ever-growing importance. With the number of majors that utilize high-performance computing expected to rise nationally by the end of the decade and the growing importance of cutting-edge supercomputers in recruiting the very best scholars, the overall direction is clear. But a lot can go wrong, which makes planning tomorrow’s high- performance computing facilities today very complicated and potentially risky.

LSU Health Shreveport (LSUHS) is planning to begin construction in January of 2027 on the Research Expansion Project. Designed by Flad Architects in association with Prevot Design and Sutton Beebe Babin Architects, the strategic development will create a new hub for biomedical discovery through the adaptive reuse of an existing 181,000-sf mall. The first $90 million phase of renovation will transform 92,500 sf of space to house the Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Facility.

Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center is engaged in a major expansion and renovation of its campus in Plains Township, Pa. The $900 million project will optimize the delivery of crucial services and transform healthcare access throughout the region. The centerpiece of the initiative is an 11-story patient tower featuring entirely private patient rooms. Designed by Francis Cauffman Architects (FCA), this world-class facility will add 144 new beds, with 58 medical/surgical beds, increasing total capacity from 356 to 500.

Carnegie Mellon University’s Highmark Center for Health, Wellness and Athletics represents the largest in a series of recent initiatives designed to enhance the student experience and boost the university’s competitive appeal. It also marks a definitive break from the old “sink-or-swim” posture that characterized campus environments across the country for decades. 

The 1,235-acre University of Maryland (UMD) campus in College Park sits just eight miles from the nation’s capital. Founded in 1856 as a land-grant institution, the university offers 300 degree programs through 12 colleges serving 41,000 students and—together with the University of Maryland, Baltimore—has $1.4 billion in sponsored research expenditures. Over the past decade, the school has experienced many shifts, including joining the Big Ten Conference and receiving its largest donation in university history.

In a higher education landscape facing shifting enrollment trends, rising costs, and an uncertain future, institutions must rethink how they use their physical spaces—not just as real estate, but as engines of purpose. And rather than traditional return on investment (ROI), they should employ “Return on Mission” to evaluate their success rather than metrics like net-to-gross ratios, utilization rates, and physical occupancy to assess their spaces. Relying solely on ROI falls short of capturing what truly matters: the activity inside the space and the value it generates.

Ancora is planning to construct a vibrant research and innovation hub in South Bend, Ind. Created in partnership with University of Notre Dame, the City of South Bend, and the State of Indiana, Colfax Corner will bring together academic experts, startups, established companies, and students to shorten the pathway from idea to impact. A five-story facility will offer 202,000 sf of laboratories, offices, and gathering venues.

The Oregon State University College of Engineering is embarking on a transformative journey to optimize space, enhance research capacity, and create a cohesive environment for students and faculty. Through strategic planning, innovative redesigns, and an emphasis on community engagement, OSU is redefining how legacy buildings can serve modern needs without massive new construction. A major focus of the 10-year plan centers on the university’s “engineering triangle,” a cluster of historic buildings dedicated to engineering research and education. These century-old buildings, while rich in history, are in desperate need of modernization to support the university’s cutting-edge research. While previous years have seen new construction, the next phase will focus on preserving and enhancing existing spaces.

Faced with growing demand to do more with less, animal laboratory managers are looking for opportunities to drive greater efficiencies. One way forward is the use of digitalization to improve energy efficiency as well as asset and space utilization. But tight budgets, the need to improve data collection and analysis, and insufficient numbers of staff trained to operate the new systems are all holding back adoption, according to experts at Siemens Smart Infrastructure. 

Northern Kentucky University is expanding and renovating the Dorothy Westerman Herrmann Science Center in Highland Heights. Designed by Omni Architects and Flad Architects, the $86 million facility will enhance the delivery of STEM+Health programs, accommodate growing enrollment, and drive regional workforce development. The addition of an 85,400-sf wing will consolidate several academic departments under one roof, including Biological Sciences, Chemistry & Biochemistry, and Physics, Geology & Engineering Technology.

Artificial intelligence is no longer a futuristic concept; it’s a transformative force actively reshaping how research is conducted, how buildings are designed, and how energy is consumed. From self-driving labs—defined as laboratories where scientific systems can autonomously perform multiple cycles of the scientific method—to smart energy systems, AI is ushering in a new era of efficiency, collaboration, and complexity. This shift was evident in a series of think tank sessions hosted by SmithGroup’s Science & Technology, Artificial Intelligence, and Energy Advisory Board, where leaders from academia, private industry, the energy sector, design, engineering and planning explored the rapid evolution of AI and its impact on research environments. In just six months between sessions, the pace of change was striking: Half of the experts expressed openness to selective technological enhancements, an idea nearly all had rejected earlier. This growing acceptance signals a more tangible AI-driven future, though strategies around governance and energy are still emerging. The following report offers insights into how AI is transforming research ecosystems, the energy infrastructure needed to support this growth, and the challenges and opportunities ahead.

The University of Alabama at Birmingham opened the Altec/Styslinger Genomic Medicine and Data Sciences Building in October of 2025. Designed by William Blackstock Architects, the $78 million project involved the renovation and expansion of the existing Lyons-Harrison Research Building to accommodate leading-edge labs, computational suites, meeting rooms, offices, and purpose-built venues for innovation and collaboration.