Santa Clara University Dedicates Learning and Technology Center

Santa Clara University dedicated the new 194,000-sf Harrington Learning Commons, Sobrato Technology Center, and Orradre Library in Santa Clara, Calif., on March 14, 2008. The building merges liberal arts education with modern information technologies to form what is expected to become the intellectual heart of the Mission campus. Designed to foster collaborative learning, the new four-level building occupies the site of SCU’s former Orradre Library and has nearly twice the square footage. It includes an automated retrieval system for more than 1.1 million volumes and features 25 collaborative workrooms, laboratories for faculty development and multimedia, three video viewing and taping rooms, wireless networking throughout, and 1,050 reader seats – each with a wired network connection and electric power. The facility is designed for flexibility and can be adapted to future needs in both learning styles and technology. Construction on the $95 million facility began in summer of 2006.