Higher Education

The $295 million Dell Seton Medical Center opened in May of 2017 in Austin, Texas. Designed by HKS and built by JE Dunn, the 517,000-sf teaching hospital accommodates training programs for the University of Texas Dell Medical School and features 13 technology-rich operating rooms and a telemedicine monitoring suite. LEED sustainable design certification will be sought for the 211-bed facility, which is owned and operated by Seton Healthcare Family, a subsidiary of Ascension Health.

The University of Nebraska at Kearney is planning to construct a $30 million facility to support applied STEM programs. Replacing the existing Otto Olsen Hall, the collaborative 80,000-sf facility will feature labs for engineering, computer sciences, physics, applied science, mechatronics, hydraulics and pneumatics, and virtual design and construction simulation. The project will also include technology-rich classrooms, a full-motion simulator, and an ITEC Testing Center. Occupancy is expected in October of 2019.

California State University, Sacramento broke ground in April of 2017 on the $91.5 million Science II building. Designed by CO Architects, the 94,500-sf facility will provide advanced laboratories for chemistry and biology, an observatory, and a planetarium. Completion is expected in June of 2019. The general contractor for the project is Sundt Construction.

The Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory opened its new $53 million headquarters in College Station in April of 2017. Designed by Perkins+Will, the 93,000-sf facility features open-plan research areas, BSL-3 labs for the detection and study of infectious diseases, BSL-2 labs, a full-service necropsy suite, a conference room, and a secure sample drop-off area. Vaughn Construction broke ground on the project in late 2014.

Union College broke ground in May of 2017 on a $100 million renovation and expansion of the Science and Engineering Center in Schenectady, N.Y. The project includes construction of a 24,000-sf addition and a complete renovation of the existing structure to create a 142,000-sf STEM complex accommodating programs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Featuring a four-story light well, the interdisciplinary facility will provide collaborative teaching and research labs, classrooms, instrumentation suites, and faculty offices.

Oklahoma State University is building the $45 million Tandy Medical Academic Building at the OSU Center for Health Sciences in Tulsa. Designed by Dewberry, the 84,000-sf facility will provide advanced simulation training suites including an emergency room, an intensive care unit, a birthing suite, an operating room, and an ambulance bay.

The University of Delaware’s College of Health Sciences encourages businesses and the community to play an active role in the Health Sciences campus, with its focus on translational medicine and utilization of the next generation of classrooms. Kathleen Matt, dean of the College of Heath Sciences, describes these learning spaces as “not a classroom at all. It is interacting in unique ways, in all kinds of environments, that drives the learning process, it drives the outcomes, and it drives the changes.”

The four-story, 93,500- sf Harrell Medical Education Building at the University of Florida (UF) houses teaching and training facilities for the medical education and the physician assistant programs, bringing together a broad variety of program spaces to promote interaction between students and faculty. The design includes an academic tower acting as the iconic gateway feature of the Health Sciences Campus. The building culminates a 10-year commitment to create a new campus on the north side of the medical center.

Carnegie Mellon University is partnering with Tata Consultancy Services to create TCS Hall in Pittsburgh. Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the 48,000-sf joint facility will provide research labs, academic and administrative offices, instructional space, an innovation courtyard, and a robotics area. TCS Hall will support collaborative research in artificial intelligence, automation, data analytics, cybersecurity, robotics, and autonomous vehicles.

McNeese State University is building the $41 million Health and Human Performance Complex in Lake Charles, La. Designed by Randy M. Goodloe and Crawford Architects, the 145,000-sf facility will provide six classrooms, 12 faculty offices, a teaching lab, and a sports training center. Ground was broken on the project in early 2017 with completion expected in June of 2018. The general contractor is Alfred Palma. 

Nebraska Wesleyan University broke ground in April of 2017 on the $27 million Duane W. Acklie Hall of Science in Lincoln. Housing the departments of biology, chemistry, and psychology, the three-story, 80,000-sf facility will provide collaborative classrooms, laboratories, study spaces, and a greenhouse. The project team includes The Clark Enersen Partners as architect of record with Celli-Flynn Brennan as design architect.

Utah State University broke ground in April of 2017 on the $45 million Life Sciences Building in Logan. Designed by VCBO Architects with Research Facilities Design (RFD) as laboratory design consultant, the 103,000-sf facility will provide 13 teaching labs, research labs, a lecture hall, and study spaces. The project will also house the Department of Biology. Completion is expected in January of 2019.

The University of Glasgow officially opened the £32 million Imaging Centre of Excellence in late March of 2017. Located at the South Glasgow Hospitals campus in Scotland, the facility features a 7-Tesla clinical MRI scanner to support advanced neurological and cardiovascular research. The building also houses neurosurgery operating suites and a biomedical business incubator called the Clinical Innovation Zone. The project was designed by BMJ Architects and built by BAM Construction.

Northwestern College broke ground in April of 2017 on a $24.5 million health and natural sciences center in Orange City, Iowa. Designed by Cannon Moss Brygger and HGA, the 61,000-sf facility will provide classrooms, labs, and offices for the departments of biology, chemistry, and nursing.

The University of Texas Medical Branch broke ground on the $90 million Health Education Building in Galveston in April of 2017. The five-story, 166,000-sf facility will support collaborative interprofessional education programs with large learning studios, technology-rich labs, flipped classrooms, and simulation training suites. The construction manager-at-risk for the project is Vaughn Construction. Occupancy is expected in spring of 2019.