Reviving a downtown community

Harrisburg University – New Academic Building

Situated in downtown Harrisburg, the new academic building provides all of the essential facilities for the educational and greater community. Classrooms, laboratories, conference and meeting space, library facilities, faculty offices, teaming areas, and storage make up the 16 storey downtown beacon.

The facility’s academic floors are joined with intercommunicating stairs and a two story atria to form two floor pods that provide a sense of community within the context of the high rise structure. Upper level floors house offices for university administration and other non-academic functions, as well a 125 seat auditorium for university and community events, conference spaces, and an outdoor roof garden. Innovative learning environments range from multi-venue classrooms equipped with small group team tables and separate plasma screens, to a learning commons. These spaces are flexible to accommodate studio format science classes and a large, operable wall classroom, and form the team and project based pedagogy that is the curriculum basis.