Back-to-school: A look at notable higher education projects opening fall 2024
August 28, 2024
Social Sharing
The 2024 school year is underway, and we’re thrilled to share several projects that are welcoming students back to campus this fall. Focusing on design that fosters interdisciplinary education, collaboration and leading-edge workforce training, these buildings will help reshape academic culture on campuses across the country.
California Institute of Technology, Resnick Sustainability Center
California Institute of Technology, Resnick Sustainability Center
The Resnick Sustainability Center at California Institute of Technology is a landmark project. Designed by the Yazdani Studio of CannonDesign, the 80,000-sf building will serve as the hub for energy and sustainability research on the Caltech campus, supporting four research initiatives: Sunlight to Everything, Climate Science, Water Resources and Global Ecology. The building features interactive learning classrooms, workshops, collaboration spaces, undergraduate teaching labs and research labs. The building envelope is conceived as an undulating glass scrim, using fritted low-E glazing and integral shading fins to minimize glare and achieve optimal energy performance.
Old Dominion University, Health Sciences Building Phase 1
Old Dominion University’s new Health Sciences Building aims to reshape the academic and physical landscape of campus. The 126,000 sf multi-story building is the new home to the schools of Dental Hygiene, Rehabilitation Science (physical therapy, occupational therapy and athletic training), and Medical Diagnostics and Translational Sciences. The spaces in the building include research and teaching laboratories, simulation laboratories, classrooms, faculty and staff offices and collaboration spaces. The ground floor features a dental hygiene clinic and Monarch Physical Therapy, which currently serves the local community and gives ODU health sciences students hands-on experience in a building separate from other health sciences facilities. The building will play a key role in the university’s emerging partnership with Norfolk State University, Eastern Virginia Medical School and Sentara Healthcare to create a School of Public Health to address the health inequities in underserved communities.
Old Dominion University, Health Sciences Building Phase 1
Old Dominion University’s new Health Sciences Building aims to reshape the academic and physical landscape of campus. The 126,000 sf multi-story building is the new home to the schools of Dental Hygiene, Rehabilitation Science (physical therapy, occupational therapy and athletic training), and Medical Diagnostics and Translational Sciences. The spaces in the building include research and teaching laboratories, simulation laboratories, classrooms, faculty and staff offices and collaboration spaces. The ground floor features a dental hygiene clinic and Monarch Physical Therapy, which currently serves the local community and gives ODU health sciences students hands-on experience in a building separate from other health sciences facilities. The building will play a key role in the university’s emerging partnership with Norfolk State University, Eastern Virginia Medical School and Sentara Healthcare to create a School of Public Health to address the health inequities in underserved communities.
Santa Monica College, Math and Science Building
Santa Monica College, Math and Science Building
The 110,000 sf Math and Science Building at Santa Monica College is a direct result of significantly increased demand for STEM courses at the southern California campus. The Gold LEED building consolidates programs previously scattered throughout the campus, creating an interdisciplinary STEM community adjacent to the college’s existing science complex. The classroom and research spaces spiral around a central courtyard, and the wings extend in gentle arcs deep into the heart of the campus, framing a diverse array of outdoor spaces, including a new science quad. Taking full advantage of the Southern California climate, the building is wrapped in a channel glass façade that funnels natural light in all learning areas, contributing to student wellness throughout. The building meets all CalGreen requirements and is expected to be a leader in environmental and energy design.
We are designing learning spaces that appeal to a diversified future workforce, helping students align their academic pursuits with market needs.
St. John’s University, St. Vincent Health Sciences Center
St. John’s University, St. Vincent Health Sciences Center
The new Health Sciences Center and St. John’s University is a new energy-efficient academic building that will support and house existing and forthcoming health sciences programs in one facility. The 70,000-sf building located on the edge of the campus’ historic Great Lawn features active learning classrooms, laboratories, simulation facilities, office space, collaborative spaces and outdoor terraces. Designed to meet health education needs of today and adapt to future needs, the building program intentionally fosters community among students and faculty. The interior focal point is a skylit three-story study commons, mimicking a “living room” of the building that promotes planned and chance interactions. The Center also features a scalable approach to sustainability, implementing design strategies that offer flexible reprogramming of spaces and contribute to the University’s carbon reduction efforts.
University of Milwaukee-Wisconsin, Chemistry Building
The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee — one of the few R1 research institutions in the Midwest — has been highly anticipating the new home for its chemistry department. Replacing a 50-year-old building, the new 163,000 sf facility was designed to share, enhance, visualize and promote the university's profound research and academic programs while fostering a cross-disciplinary and collaborative environment. Not only does the building advance the practice and teaching of chemistry, but also it is physically structured to resemble protein and lattice structures like those found in chemistry research. State-of-the-art labs spaces are separated by breakout zones and pockets of public space throughout the interior, which is reflected in the building’s exterior braided pattern. This design efficiently created space to embed the alternative learning and teaching spaces that make the building unique.
University of Milwaukee-Wisconsin, Chemistry Building
The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee — one of the few R1 research institutions in the Midwest — has been highly anticipating the new home for its chemistry department. Replacing a 50-year-old building, the new 163,000 sf facility was designed to share, enhance, visualize and promote the university's profound research and academic programs while fostering a cross-disciplinary and collaborative environment. Not only does the building advance the practice and teaching of chemistry, but also it is physically structured to resemble protein and lattice structures like those found in chemistry research. State-of-the-art labs spaces are separated by breakout zones and pockets of public space throughout the interior, which is reflected in the building’s exterior braided pattern. This design efficiently created space to embed the alternative learning and teaching spaces that make the building unique.
University of Utah Impact and Prosperity Center
University of Utah Impact and Prosperity Center
The University of Utah's Impact and Prosperity Epicenter is an entirely new type of academic building, one that unites student housing, experiential spaces and entrepreneurial learning, all in the name of positive social impact. Designed by our Yazdani Studio of CannonDesign team in association with MHTN Architects, the 235,000 sf building is a "nerve center" to empower current and future generations of social impact practitioners to advance ideas that can change the world. The building features three key parts: six floors of student housing and living spaces, adjacent offices that headquarter two dynamic teams — the Center for Business, Health and Prosperity and the Sorenson Impact Institute — and a Forum that serves as an intersectional space uniting building residents and experts from both centers in a true living-learning community.
Virginia Tech, War Memorial Hall Renovation
This renovation project aligned a wide spectrum of student services across two of Virginia Tech's primary student life facilities — War Memorial Hall, built in 1924 with an addition in 1972 and McComas Hall, constructed in the 1990s with an addition in the 2000s. The 247,000 sf site is now an innovative, interdisciplinary pair of buildings housing six programs: Recreational Sports, Hokie Wellness, Cook Counseling Center, Schiffert Health Center, the School of Education and the Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise (HNFE), an academic unit of the College of Agriculture. Combined, these departments provide an opportunity to serve the student population with holistic services ranging from counseling, wellness education, academic programs focused on human performance, fitness and student health.
Virginia Tech, War Memorial Hall Renovation
This renovation project aligned a wide spectrum of student services across two of Virginia Tech's primary student life facilities — War Memorial Hall, built in 1924 with an addition in 1972 and McComas Hall, constructed in the 1990s with an addition in the 2000s. The 247,000 sf site is now an innovative, interdisciplinary pair of buildings housing six programs: Recreational Sports, Hokie Wellness, Cook Counseling Center, Schiffert Health Center, the School of Education and the Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise (HNFE), an academic unit of the College of Agriculture. Combined, these departments provide an opportunity to serve the student population with holistic services ranging from counseling, wellness education, academic programs focused on human performance, fitness and student health.
Washington State University–Vancouver, Life Sciences Building
Washington State University–Vancouver, Life Sciences Building
The new 60,000 sf Life Sciences Building at Washington State University-Vancouver, designed by SRG + CannonDesign, is designed to support WSU Vancouver's expanding life sciences programs, featuring advanced laboratories for biology and chemistry along with specialized spaces for nursing, psychology, neuroscience, medicine and molecular biology. Delivered through the progressive design-build method, it stands as a national model for institutions seeking to create impactful educational environments that prioritize well-being, inclusion and sustainability — all while meeting strict budget and schedule requirements.
