flexiblefullpage -



billboard - default
interstitial1 - interstitial
catfish1 - bottom

University Buildings

Not only are the world’s youth educated in these buildings, but much of the globe’s most ground-breaking research takes place here. Requirements for housing students are more expansive than ever, but need to be balanced with the university’s real purpose: the pursuit of knowledge. Great design can inspire that pursuit.

Jan 19, 2011

Biomedical research center in Texas to foster scientific collaboration

The new Health and Biomedical Sciences Center at the University of Houston will facilitate interaction between scientists in a 167,000-sf, six-story research facility. The center will bring together researchers from many of the school’s departments to collaborate on interdisciplinary projects. The facility also will feature an ambulatory surgery center for the College of Optometry, the first of its kind for an optometry school. Boston-based firms Shepley Bulfinch and Bailey Architects designed the project.

Dec 28, 2010

Project of the Week: Community college for next-gen Homeland Security personnel

The College of DuPage, Glen Ellyn, Ill., began work on the Homeland Security Education Center, which will prepare future emergency personnel to tackle terrorist attacks and disasters. The $25 million, 61,100-sf building’s centerpiece will be an immersive interior street lab for urban response simulations.

Dec 17, 2010

Sam Houston State arts programs expand into new performance center

Theater, music, and dance programs at Sam Houston State University have a new venue in the 101,945-sf, $38.5 million James and Nancy Gaertner Performing Arts Center. WHR Architects, Houston, designed the new center to connect two existing buildings at the Huntsville, Texas, campus.

Dec 17, 2010

New engineering building goes for net-zero energy

A new $90 million, 250,000-sf classroom and laboratory facility with a 450-seat auditorium for the College of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign is aiming for LEED Platinum.

Dec 17, 2010

How to Win More University Projects

University architects representing four prominent institutions of higher learning tell how your firm can get the inside track on major projects.

Nov 23, 2010

The George W. Bush Presidential Center, which will house the former president’s library

The George W. Bush Presidential Center, which will house the former president’s library and museum, plus the Bush Institute, is aiming for LEED Platinum. The 226,565-sf center, located at Southern Methodist University, in Dallas, was designed by architect Robert A.M. Stern and landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh.

Nov 9, 2010

Just how green is that college campus?

The College Sustainability Report Card 2011 evaluated colleges and universities in the U.S. and Canada with the 300 largest endowments—plus 22 others that asked to be included in the GreenReportCard.org study—on nine categories, including climate change, energy use, green building, and investment priorities. More than half (56%) earned a B or better, but 6% got a D. Can you guess which is the greenest of these: UC San Diego, Dickinson College, University of Calgary, and Dartmouth? Hint: The Red Devil has turned green.
Nov 9, 2010

Designing a library? Don’t focus on books

How do you design a library when print books are no longer its core business? Turn them into massive study halls. That’s what designers did at the University of Amsterdam, where they transformed the existing 27,000-sf library into a study center—without any visible books. About 2,000 students visit the facility daily and encounter workspaces instead of stacks.
Nov 3, 2010

First of three green labs opens at Iowa State University

Designed by ZGF Architects, in association with OPN Architects, the Biorenewable Research Laboratory on the Ames campus of Iowa State University is the first of three projects completed as part of the school’s Biorenewables Complex. The 71,800-sf LEED Gold project is one of three wings that will make up the 210,000-sf complex.

Nov 3, 2010

Seattle University’s expanded library trying for LEED Gold

Pfeiffer Partners Architects, in collaboration with Mithun Architects, programmed, planned, and designed the $55 million renovation and expansion of Lemieux Library and McGoldrick Learning Commons at Seattle University. The LEED-Gold-designed facility’s green features include daylighting, sustainable and recycled materials, and a rain garden.

leaderboard1 - default