Higher Education

Construction began in May of 2024 on Heathcock Hall, a new 81,700-gsf interdisciplinary research and education building for UC Berkeley’s College of Chemistry. Accommodating programs in synthetic chemistry, physical chemistry, and chemical and biomolecular engineering, the structure will house six stories of research labs, support space, offices, and collaboration venues for investigators, faculty, and students. Heathcock Hall will be connected to two adjacent buildings—Latimer and Lewis halls—which also house chemistry labs.

Michigan State University (MSU) and Henry Ford Health have joined forces to construct the $335 million Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Research Center, which will house 84 principal investigators and their research teams focused on cancer, neuroscience, infectious diseases, immunology, and public health. The first floor will accommodate a large core lab including an imaging suite. An entire floor will be dedicated to the Nick Gilbert Neurofibromatosis Research Institute.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison broke ground in May of 2024 on the College of Letters & Science’s new Irving & Dorothy Levy Hall, a 136,000-sf facility that will serve as the new home for eight academic departments. The building was designed by Bora Architecture & Interiors in collaboration with Ramlow/Stein Architecture + Interiors, with C.D. Smith Construction serving as the construction manager.

Construction has begun on the Marine Research Institute and Sea Turtle Research Center and Hospital at the University of Florida’s Whitney Lab for Marine Bioscience. The building, designed by Lord Aeck Sargent and TTV Architects, is planned for LEED Gold certification. DPR is the construction manager.

Texas A&M-Texarkana is planning to break ground in late May of 2024 on the Business, Engineering, and Technology Building (BET), a 53,500-sf facility housing those three interdisciplinary programs. The $45 million project also includes a renovation of the Science and Technology Building, which will connect to the new facility with walkways on the second and third floors.

Rice University broke ground in May of 2024 on an expanded home for the Jones Graduate School of Business in Houston. Designed by Architecture Research Office (ARO) and Kirksey Architecture, the $54.5 million project will offer a range of instructional settings including seminar rooms, team learning rooms, two 65-seat classrooms, and two 120-seat classrooms. Approximately 13 breakout rooms interwoven throughout the 112,000-sf structure will promote interaction and exchange.

The University of California, Riverside will begin construction in summer of 2024 on the Undergraduate Teaching & Learning Facility. Offering a seating capacity of 1,700, the $156.3 million building will provide much-needed instructional space for multiple colleges and departments. The 100,700-gsf structure will accommodate two lecture halls, 19 classrooms, six biology labs, and four chemistry labs. An expanded dance studio with a sprung floor will be complemented by an outdoor performance area.

Clemson University is planning to break ground in late 2024 on a $285.5 million facility for the College of Veterinary Medicine. Addressing a nationwide shortage of veterinarians, the 232,500-gsf complex will offer sophisticated learning environments for programs in animal health. The development will support a distributed pedagogical model that prepares students to go directly to local animal hospitals for training and clinical study, instead of spending several years in a teaching hospital.

The University of Arizona opened the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine in Tucson in April of 2024. Designed by Line and Space, the 30,000-sf complex comprises three buildings linked by landscaped pathways. MIND provides collaborative environments for research, innovation, and administration, complemented by BODY, a wellness hub with a movement studio and a demonstration kitchen, and SPIRIT, a serene space for mindfulness, meditation, and contemplation. 

Savannah River National Laboratory is constructing the Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative (AMC) on the campus of the University of South Carolina Aiken. Designed by Page and STOA Architects, the $50 million facility will enable the Department of Energy's Office of Environmental Management to engage in shared discovery with academic institutions, industry partners, and government agencies at the city, state, and federal level.

The University of Montana is planning to construct a new home for the W.A. Franke College of Forestry and Conservation in Missoula. Designed by ZGF Architects and A&E Design, the 60,000-sf project will collocate facilities currently dispersed across campus in a vibrant hub for teaching and research. This living laboratory will serve as a teaching tool for sustainable forestry and wood construction spanning design, material application, and supply chain transparency. 

The University of Virginia opened the $33 million School of Data Science in April of 2024 in Charlottesville. Designed by Hopkins Architects and VMDO, the 61,000-sf facility offers collaborative environments for teaching, research, and discovery. Four adaptive classrooms equipped with integrated learning technologies will support a pedagogy based on experiential education.

Wexford Science + Technology is constructing the $1.2 billion Aggie Square on the Sacramento campus of the University of California, Davis. Designed by ZGF Architects, the innovation district is being developed in association with GMH Capital Partners. The 8.25-acre site will feature an expansive plaza framed by three glass-clad structures providing between 230,000 sf and 310,000 sf each.

A study of three academic medical centers constructed in 2009, 2014, and 2020 reveals little change in the square footage of research spaces over time but a radical change in how the square footage is being used. The result is research space that is more efficient, flexible, adaptable, and functional, with a higher percentage of space dedicated to lab support. The metrics gathered in this study can help guide lab planners as they look to the future.

With active learning classrooms, Florida International University’s Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine was presented an opportunity to think differently about how to create spaces that support a different approach to instruction and interaction. Figuring out what works and what doesn’t in terms of acoustics, technology, lighting, and sightlines has demonstrated the importance of aligning the space—and the technology within it—with the pedagogy rather than the reverse.