Architecture and the University: An Intersection of Form and Function

As aging buildings cease to reflect the needs of a student body and increasing technology in every aspect of education, universities have the opportunity to implement a variety of flexible spaces that may be useful for more than just education. Institutions are using form and function to produce architecture that reflects the modern workscape and prepares students for collaborative work environments. 

Although students continue to use spaces like libraries for studying outside of class, the ways students learn have changed, allowing universities to change the buildings to accommodate student needs better.

Flex Spaces for the Win

Virginia Commonwealth University’s James Branch Cabell Library was expanded in 2015, with new spaces designed to support many types of group learning and research.

“The addition we opened in 2016 has three floors with collaborative spaces, including reservable group study rooms, seating for groups and flexible furniture,” said Molly Case, communications manager at VCU. “ The upper two floors have quiet and silent spaces designed to support focused work, with furniture selected for privacy and individual study. All floors feature ample outlets and charging options and desktop computers.”

According to Ashley Flintoff, director of planning and space management at Wayne State University, flexible group and solo workplaces are often at the top of students’ and faculties’ requests for spaces outside classrooms and offices. 

“Taking that to heart, we’ve pushed our design consultants to incorporate more of these ‘collision’ or collaboration spaces in new projects,” said Flintoff. 

Wayne recently completed the M. Roy Wilson State Hall renovation. The project was an $80 million reinvention of the university’s largest classroom building, which was initially built in 1947.

“The project was a complete gut renovation and one of the main aspects of the new design was taking advantage of every inch to incorporate spaces outside of the classroom for students and faculty,” said Flintoff.

Just as VCU did with its Cabell Library expansion, Wayne’s renovation of M. Roy Wilson State Hall included the addition of various kinds of seating, including benches, booths and tables, as well as the installation of supplemental outlets. The project also updated classrooms to be more flexible. 

“Large lecture halls were reconfigured to allow for ‘double tier’  seating, meaning there are two rows of tables with movable chairs on each tier to allow for active learning in large lectures,” Flintoff said. “We also incorporated a variety of flexible furniture, chosen with the input of students, into the building so that classrooms can be reconfigured as pedagogy dictates. Lastly, all classrooms are hy-flex capable with all large lecture halls and all classrooms on the first floor standardized on hy-flex AV technology.”

Variety Proves Successful

The University of Michigan-Dearborn also renovated two key spaces in its Mardigian Library — one classroom and one study lounge — to increase flexibility in 2016. 

The Active Learning Classroom is a flexible space designed to work on all kinds of courses, including those for lectures, group work and projects. In the years since the Active Learning Classroom opened, the university has found students give consistently higher course evaluations for classes that met in the space. Students refer to the location’s ability to facilitate more effective group work, as well as the availability of Chrome books and large monitors for projects and presentations, said Emily Hamilton, director of planning and construction at the University of Michigan-Dearborn.

Meanwhile, the university researched the 4,000-square-foot mixed-use Learning Commons for two years before renovations began. During renovation, it was outfitted with chairs and tables of various shapes to facilitate both study and relaxation, as well as a wealth of electrical outlets.

The variety was intended as a temporary measure to research student preferences, according to the university’s 2016 release. The space has not seen significant alterations since it opened, perhaps suggesting variety itself was what students preferred, said Hamilton

Wayne State experienced similar responses when it opened the Integrative Biosciences Center (IBio), a 200,000-square-foot facility in 2015. The facility was designed in collaboration with the university’s vice president for research and representatives from facilities planning and management, as well as end users, to ensure the design would be flexible enough to suit the needs of its occupants. 

“Some of the spaces, such as the collaborative meeting areas and break room areas are used heavily,” Flintoff said. “Likewise, the atrium is used more and more for events as well as an additional break room for staff.”

However, Flintoff said that the openness of the offices and workstations without smaller breakout spaces and opportunities for privacy has not worked as well as the institution had hoped. 

“The lesson learned, I believe, is that we did not provide a diverse space typology to accommodate the many ways that people want to work,” said Flintoff.

How People Want to Work

In February 2022, the Knauss Center for Business Education opened as the new home of the Knauss School of Business at the University of San Diego. Even before construction plans, several groups of faculty had a “wish list” for what might be included in the new space, according to Kenneth Bates, associate professor of marketing at the Knauss School of Business. 

“Through this time the school grew in both student and faculty population, technology advanced, opinions evolved and building costs increased rapidly,” Bates said. “ It became more challenging to include all viewpoints into the final plans. I will say that faculty viewpoints were taken into consideration, but the administration had the final say on how the building was constructed.”

The building includes flexible study spaces containing varied seating arrangements, 24 reconfigurable classrooms, a data analytics lab and a finance lab. There are a variety of other spaces such as the Nexus Theater, a large space that can be reconfigured to host meetings, conferences or workshops. 

“Anecdotally, I see the students attending events, speakers and club meetings in the building,” Bates said. “ It has been great to see that we can keep all of these various experiences in-house rather than hosting in different corners of campus or off campus.”

Activities, such as hosting conferences, putting on employer meet and greets, holding faculty meetings and delivering talks from invited guests, have been provided in the Nexus Theater.  

“It has proven to be a versatile space already in its early days of operation,” said Bates.

Other Methods of Collaboration

Other universities have used different approaches to design a new space. 

“We believe in a community-driven approach to engagement,” said Flintoff. 

Wayne University’s recent renovation projects, such as those for the STEM Innovation Learning Center and M. Roy Wilson State Hall, have highlighted the importance of this approach. In both cases, the university convened an advisory committee consisting of faculty, academic staff, students, IT and the provost’s office to work in conjunction with the design team starting with programming.

“The value of this method cannot be overstated. We get consensus from the users of the space at the onset of the project which results in broader acceptance of innovative ideas and spaces at the end of the project,” said Flintoff. “We are still collecting data, but anecdotally, we also are seeing higher utilization in spaces that were renovated with faculty and student input than those that were not.”

VCU used a similarly collectivist approach. 

“When we begin specific construction or renovation projects, we work collaboratively with internal stakeholders, including faculty, staff and students as well as facilities, technology and other administration departments,” said Case. “Their input is essential to designing spaces that meet academic program needs and support student success.”

The university’s STEM building, which was completed in 2023, included several spaces designed with input from stakeholders at various levels of the university. One such space is The Science Hub, where traditional office hours are turned on their head by allowing students to meet with faculty outside of class time in a collaborative space rather than a professor’s office, which some students may find intimidating or inconvenient. The building also boasts a forensics lab, 200-seat classrooms and an assortment of lounges throughout the building.

Marketing the Changes

University architecture can have an impact on students before they’re even students. 

“Our research found that an attractive campus is important to deciding where to go to college, and that facilities shape perceptions of intangible college choice elements such as the quality of faculty, the value of the education and the safety of the campus,” said VCU’s Case. As all marketers and university tour guides know, any new facility on campus that serves students, whether it be classroom, residential, research or recreation space is a selling point for prospective students and employees. 

“In this case, the STEM building is a significant source of pride for the entire VCU community, serving more than 10,000 students who take one of the 70 classes held in the building,” Case said. “As such, it was important to build awareness about the building and the academic programs offered there.” 

“The university is hyper-aware of the balance between creating an attractive, exciting and enjoyable student experience to attract and retain students, as well as faculty and staff, and keeping our costs low to make our institution affordable for our students,” said UM-Dearborn’s Hamilton. “We take advantage of grants and state and federal funding when available, and look for creative ways to stretch our budgets and the lifespan of our spaces and furnishings through careful maintenance.”

For others, marketing is less of a priority when designing a new space. 

“Being able to market what we do to better assist in attracting and retaining students and faculty is important, but our goal is to create spaces that best support their needs,” Flintoff said. “Our goal is to prepare our students to make a difference on a global scale and so our facilities must be able to adapt to their needs, meet them where they are, and support them as they innovate and grow into impactful, global citizens. Technology is a piece of that puzzle, as is the flexibility of space, inclusion of universal design principles, and the willingness to pivot to meet the changing needs of our faculty, students and staff.”

The universities know that the educational experience is more than just a new building or facility. The process of integrating new spaces helps students feel seen and prepared to tackle the challenges ahead.

“A building does not make or break an educational experience,” said Bates. “It is the people that are most important.  However, I do think we are only starting to scratch the surface of the many opportunities that can be augmented when you bring motivated and talented individuals into a state-of-the-art facility.”