Higher Education

The University of Cincinnati Health is building the $60.5 million Gardner Neuroscience Institute in the Corryville area of Cincinnati. The 114,000-sf outpatient facility was designed by Perkins+Will to provide patient-centered neurological and psychiatric care. The four-story project will include an auditorium, a patient lounge, a café, an outdoor rehabilitation area, and an underground parking garage. Ground was broken on the facility in February of 2017 and occupancy is expected in 2019. The construction cost of the building is $26.6 million. 

The University of Sussex is planning to build the £60 million Life Sciences Building in Brighton in the United Kingdom. Designed by Hawkins Brown Architects, the 183,000-sf project includes the renovation of an existing genome research building and construction of a five-story addition housing technology-rich classrooms and collaborative laboratories for research and teaching. The sustainably designed facility will feature natural materials, green roofs, and internal courtyard atriums.

The Medical College of Georgia is engaged in a $62.5 million expansion of its cancer research facilities in Augusta. Designed to promote interaction between clinicians and researchers, the project includes the creation of a three-story facility housing offices and collaboration space connecting the M.

California State University, Dominguez Hills is partnering with the Toyota USA Foundation to build the Toyota Center for Innovation in STEM Education in Carson. Designed by HGA Architects with RFD (Research Facilities Design) as laboratory design consultant, the 87,000-sf facility will include a fabrication lab, SMART classrooms, collaborative workspaces, and labs for K-12 teacher training and demonstrations.

The University of Texas of the Permian Basin began construction in April of 2017 on a $55 million engineering building in Midland. Designed by Stantec and JSA Architects, the three-story, 105,800-gsf facility will provide laboratories, classrooms, a lecture hall, and faculty offices. The general contractor for the project is Adolfson and Peterson Construction. Completion is expected in April of 2019. 

Bentley University opened the renovated Jennison Hall in March of 2017 in Waltham, Mass. Designed by ARC/Architectural Resources Cambridge, the $22.5 million project comprises 85,000 sf of space accommodating classrooms, labs, offices, and interaction areas.

The University of Tampa is planning to construct the 90,000-sf Graduate and Health Studies Building to accommodate programs in nursing and allied health professions. Designed by Beck Architecture and KWJ Architects, the six-story facility will also provide smart classrooms, simulation suites, conference rooms, faculty and administrative offices, health science labs, and study spaces. LEED sustainable design certification will be sought for the project, which is slated for completion in fall of 2018. 

Maker spaces, specifically designed to serve the needs of learners and best take advantage of local resources, are surpassing classrooms as the most effective way to educate science and engineering students. Students need access to a variety of equipment, technology, and spaces, from 3D and large format printers to sewing machines and electronic tables, from collaboration zones to woodworking areas.

The Rockefeller University is constructing the $300 million Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis Research Building in New York. Designed by Rafael Viñoly Architects, the two-story, 135,600-sf facility will provide flexible, open laboratories, two amphitheaters, offices, conference rooms, a dining area, outdoor terraces, and a green roof. Completion is expected in 2019.

Tarleton State University broke ground in late March of 2017 on a $54 million engineering building in Stephenville, Texas. Accommodating programs in computer science, engineering, and engineering technology, the three-story, 98,000-sf facility will feature specialized laboratories for robotics, prototyping, fluid dynamics, and materials testing. The project will also provide classrooms, offices, high-bay spaces, a flume, and a wind tunnel.

A dynamic, forward-looking partnership between the University of Michigan Medical School and the A. Alfred Taubman Health Sciences Library has transformed a relatively hidden, introverted, and utilitarian 1970s book repository into a vibrant 21st century learning hub. But the original goal of this $55 million renovation project was much more modest than a whole-building transformation: It was simply to improve the medical student lounge, a windowless basement space that with each passing year had become less inviting to prospective and current students, as other medical schools improved their student-life spaces.

North Central College celebrated the opening of the $60 million Science Center in March of 2017. Located in Naperville, Ill., the four-story, 125,000-sf facility will support progressive pedagogies for STEM education programs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Designed by Holabird & Root, the multidisciplinary building provides 18 teaching labs, 16 research labs, 15 seminar classrooms, 19 student gathering areas, 53 faculty and staff offices, a lecture hall, and a greenhouse.

The University of California, San Francisco will break ground in April of 2017 on the $275 million Precision Cancer Medicine Building. Designed by Stantec to optimize the delivery of patient-centered care, the 170,000-gsf facility will provide 63,000 sf of clinical space, 45 infusion bays, two accelerator vaults, specialized medical laboratories, and diagnostic instrumentation suites. The six-story building is located on UCSF's Mission Bay campus and will enable the consolidation of outpatient services in a centralized location.

SUNY New Paltz opened the $48 million Science Hall in March of 2017 in New Paltz, N.Y. Designed by ZGF Architects, the two-story, 77,000-sf facility provides lecture halls, collaboration spaces, and 20 laboratories to support STEM programs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. LEED Silver certification will be sought for the sustainably designed project, which was built by Niram Construction. 

Drexel University is initiating $6.6 million in energy efficiency upgrades at its Philadelphia campus. Funded by the state of Pennsylvania’s Campus Energy Efficiency Fund (CEEF), the project will reduce energy consumption and emissions, upgrade five key buildings, increase comfort and safety in labs and classrooms, and lower overall operating costs. Upon completion, Drexel’s energy consumption will decrease by more than 25 percent in three science buildings and two mixed-use campus facilities which cumulatively account for more than 430,000 sf.