Higher Education

Miami University is constructing a $96 million health sciences building in Oxford, Ohio. Designed by BSA Lifestructures, the 165,000-gsf facility will create dynamic synergies between programs in nursing and allied health professions. The north wing of the three-story structure will offer classrooms, teaching labs, a fitness studio, and a wellness center. The middle wing will house research labs, faculty and staff offices, interprofessional lounges, eight simulation suites,  a wet/dry training lab, two 20-bed skills labs, and a gross anatomy lab.

The University of Victoria will break ground in early 2022 on a CAD$89.6 million project to provide new facilities for the Department of Engineering and Computer Science (ECS). A six-story addition to the existing ECS building will feature new laboratories and instructional venues for the university's growing programs in biomedical, civil, computer, electrical, mechanical, and software engineering. The adjacent High Bay Research and Structures Lab will enable large-scale experiments and the testing of new construction methods and materials.

Lord Fairfax Community College is constructing the $30 million Hazel Hall in Warrenton, Va. Designed by Grimm + Parker, the 40,000-sf facility will provide multifunctional learning environments for programs in science, engineering, and health professions. The two-story structure will include a nursing skills lab, simulation suites, science labs, engineering and fabrication labs, classrooms, study areas, faculty offices, and a flexible 275-seat conference venue. Existing classrooms and labs in Wolk Hall will also be renovated.

The University of Illinois at Chicago broke ground in July of 2021 on the $118 million Computer Design Research and Learning Center. Designed by LMN Architects and Booth Hansen to enhance interaction and intellectual exchange, the 135,000-sf facility will provide 35 research labs, 15 classrooms, faculty and administrative offices, an auditorium, and a flexible event venue. The inviting structure will act as a new hub of campus activity with a five-story daylit atrium and an undergraduate learning and community center.

Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and RWJBarnabas Health broke ground in June of 2021 on the $750 million Jack & Sheryl Morris Cancer Center in New Brunswick. Designed by HOK, the 510,000-sf structure will enable the consolidation of key cancer services in a single integrated location.

Occupancy restrictions are being lifted across the country, and companies and institutions are anxious to get back to business. But it’s clear that for many, the workplace will never look the same. After a year-and-a-half of maintaining only a virtual presence in the office, classroom, and to some extent even the lab, employees want to retain some of the autonomy and flexibility they discovered while working remotely. And employers, who have learned that much of the corporate and academic mission can be fulfilled from anywhere without sacrificing productivity, want to make better use of their space. One likely scenario going forward is a hybrid workplace—a combination of remote and in-person activity. In a recent Tradeline survey of 155 individuals at 115 organizations nationwide, 76 percent of the respondents named hybrid workplaces as their top space planning and management priority.

Pennsylvania State University broke ground in July of 2021 on the West 1 engineering building in University Park. Located on the West Campus, the 290,000-gsf facility will provide general-purpose classrooms, faculty and administrative offices, and research and teaching labs for programs in aerospace engineering, architectural engineering, acoustics, and civil and environmental engineering. Strategically grouping research programs by theme will dramatically increase the utilization of shared spaces.

Northeastern University is constructing the 350,000-sf EXP building in Boston. Complementing the adjacent Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex, the highly collaborative facility will provide active learning environments, teaching and research labs, a maker space, undergraduate chemistry labs, executive offices, a café, and a faculty club. Housing the Institute for Experiential Robotics and the Institute for the Wireless Internet of Things, the eight-story structure will accelerate the development of advanced humanoid robots, drones, and autonomous vehicles.

MiraCosta Community College is planning to construct a 23,000-sf chemistry and biotechnology building in Oceanside, Calif. The $46.9 million project, crafted through a design-build partnership between HED and C.W. Driver, will provide leading-edge environments for the school's growing biotechnology program and other STEM courses in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Featuring flexible, 40-person classrooms, the facility will offer a vibrant mix of instructional, work, social, and laboratory spaces.

With its Sobrato Campus for Discovery and Innovation, Santa Clara University has bridged the stark divide between the entrepreneurial mindset of its Silicon Valley neighbors and the steadfastness typically found in academia. Colleges and universities frequently borrow ideas from, and sometimes consult with, the companies they hope will hire their graduates. Santa Clara took it one step further by involving the corporate donor in every phase of the design. The result is a facility—featuring student-driven project spaces, interconnected and accessible faculty work areas, and collaborative teaching and research environments—that represents the expectation of Silicon Valley for its graduates to be ready to work across disciplines and on integrated teams.

The University of Arizona broke ground in June of 2021 on the $85 million Applied Research Building in Tucson. Collocating investigators from four colleges and eight departments, the three-story, 89,000-sf structure will offer sophisticated laboratories for engineering, applied physical sciences, and advanced manufacturing.

Hofstra University broke ground in June of 2021 on the $75 million Science and Innovation Center in Hempstead, N.Y. Designed by HLW, the 75,000-sf facility will feature technology-rich labs and classrooms for the DeMatteis School of Engineering and Applied Science. The project will also provide the Hofstra Northwell School of Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies with advanced learning environments for interprofessional education including state-of-the-art simulation suites and clinical teaching labs.

Harvey Mudd College recently completed the $30 million McGregor Computer Science Center in Claremont, Calif. Designed by Steinberg Hart, the three-story, 36,000-sf facility collocates the department of computer science with a campus-wide maker space to create a vibrant hub for project-based learning. An expansive lobby with integrated study and interaction areas creates a welcoming hub for multidisciplinary discovery.

Lehigh University is expanding the Rauch School of Business with the construction of a $38.2 million facility in Bethlehem, Pa. Designed by Voith & Mactavish Architects, the 74,000-sf structure will provide technology-rich environments for interactive learning and discovery.

A onetime University of Maryland student who struck it big in the tech industry returned to donate significant funding for a new computer science center—one that brings Silicon Valley facilities, visible building tech, and up-to-the-minute environmental controls into College Park. Brendan Iribe left school and ended up cofounding Oculus, which was later sold to Facebook for $2 billion. He returned to Maryland with a vision for inspiring innovators of the future by providing them with spaces in which to create new technologies.