Delaware Valley College

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1 FOCUSED ON CREATION PASSION TO DELIVER Delaware Valley College Life Sciences Building

2 Delaware Valley College Services Provided Design Development Feasibility Study Bridging Documents Location Doylestown, PA Size 41,000 SF Contact Arthur Glass Vice President for Finance and Administration Delaware Valley College 700 East Butler Avenue Doylestown, PA t Arthur.Glass@delval.edu Well known for their science programs, Delaware Valley College (DVC) decided that new learning spaces were in order. The 41,000 SF building, the first new building on the campus in many years, is designed to engage students in learning both inside and outside of the classroom and lab. The design process began with a review of the proposed site. As is typical of so many institutions, the older, important buildings are grouped around a lovely green quad. At DVC, the initial thought was to locate the new building at the open north end of the quad. As the design team studied the site, however, it became evident that the proposed building was too small to anchor this end of the rather large quad, and combined with student concern that the new building s location would egregiously impact A day (Activities Day, once a year community, multi-day festival that benefits a scholarship fund named after it), the team, with the College s full cooperation, began to quickly explore other locations on campus, always returning to those with a link to the campus green. The NELSON team ultimately settled on a location just to the west of the initially proposed location. Aligning the building with the existing buildings on the west side of the quad not only strengthened the quad, it created a new presence for the College on Butler Pike and at the main entry for visitors to the campus, allowed the new building to reference the old and historic campus gate, preserved A day activity space and allowed the College to study how best to use the north end of the quad in its upcoming Master Plan effort. The new building is thus a good neighbor. DVC, with its sights set on University status, acknowledges that the new building will help with their quest. 1

3 Delaware Valley College continued At the same time, however, the College was adamant The deliberately wide teaching and lab corridors have the community at large. This auditorium, located that the new building incorporate the latest in been designed to support informal seating paired with immediately off the building lobby, accommodates 450 pedagogical thinking and practices, that the new building teaching displays and whiteboards, wireless nodes seats on two levels, and was designed to feel intimate be a place that the entire community could use, and that and docking stations, allowing students to engage in whether serving a typical science lecture, a campus it incorporate sustainability. While the focus at DVC is on discussions and teamwork outside of the classroom. At convocation, a conference or a musical performance. A science, there has been an explosive growth and change either end, glazing and stairs link the two floors. large window brings light into the space and announces the college s new venture in collaborative learning and in science of late - from revolutionary technologies and materials, to multi-disciplinary approaches that engage While programming the new building, the College community sharing to the outside world. Outside the the experience of multi-constituent groups, to prompt decided to enlarge and upgrade the proposed tiered building, a landscaped forecourt, outdoor amphitheater synergy of thought and serendipity of inspiration. The classroom to take advantage of the new building s and a preserved adjacent garden also provide additional building needs both to support and foster this activity prominent location on the campus green and to better areas for informal learning and social interaction. with well-equipped yet flexible labs and technology- serve the needs of both the campus community and enabled classrooms, meeting areas and lounges in short, this building was envisioned as housing and supporting a multitude of purposes and activities. A generous, light-filled multi-story atrium and lobby houses informal, moveable furniture and discretely placed white boards that will allow students to meet and work in groups, as well as spaces just off the lobby that can be used or programmed for specific activities. The lobby has become a real crossroads that allows students to meet each other, hang out, plug in and to see and be seen. Due to student demand, the building has become a 24 hour facility. 2

4 Delaware Valley College continued The building was carefully sited on the college s campus green to respect the surrounding campus fabric and campus traditions, and took its design cues porch, columns, lantern, materials from many of the neighboring buildings. Making it contemporary, and announcing its mission to engage the community, is the glass wrapped front wall, which allows sun in during the day and spills light out at night, making this building transparent and linking the communal green. Another unique feature of the building is the glass enclosed semi-circular grand stair that connects the upper and lower lobbies: on the stair, a person will be able to look out to the historic gates that once signaled the entrance to this venerable college. The building, designed to be used by multiple departments, has indeed lived up to the College s goals, making the building a true, interdisciplinary facility that will benefit all of Delaware Valley College s students. 3

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10 Walnut Street Philadelphia, PA t f