EAST LANSING, Mich.— The opening of the new Edward J. Minskoff Pavilion at Michigan State University was celebrated in late September.

The three-story building spans 100,000 square feet that transforms the Eli Broad College of Business into a unified complex that combines modern teaching facilities with contemporary social spaces. Technology integration, classrooms and flexible spaces promote academic and professional excellence

LMN Architects was the architect on this approximately $62-million project that was designed in collaboration with FTCH, OLIN and Clark Construction.

Said LMN Architects Partner Rafael Viñoly-Menendez, “From our first conversations on the project, Dean Gupta expressed a clear vision for the building: a place that would not only foster learning, collaboration and engagement with alumni and the business community, but also a facility that would weave the existing spaces to create a more cohesive “campus within a campus.’ He was equally inspired by the opportunity to connect the interior spaces to nature as an essential element of the student’s well-being. And, above all, the building needed to welcome all students and not be perceived as exclusively a benefit to the business school.”

The building is located within the heart of the university along the Red Cedar River. A central communal atrium is framed by two program “bars” that focus views through the building to the river and landscape beyond. Classrooms, student services and administrative spaces are dispersed through all levels and are arranged around this central social space.

“The atrium was designed to be the ‘heart’ of the Broad College of Business, the place where students can gather, as individuals and a community, to share experiences,” said Viñoly-Menendez.

The atrium provides a new hub for Broad College to host college-wide events, recruitment fairs, informal gatherings and team collaboration, search for drugs. Circulation balconies overlooking the atrium lead to flat/flexible and tiered/case study classrooms for discussions, technology-enabled active learning and networking. A central feature of the atrium are generous amphitheater stairs. The pavilion’s masonry, glass, and metal exterior express the contemporary functionality surrounding campus architecture.

“The Minskoff Pavilion is unlike any other project the university has seen and represents the next phase of higher education,” said Dean Gupta.

“We placed an intentional emphasis on the pavilion’s architecture and classroom designs to enhance the experience that each student will have. Broad Spartans have a new building on campus where they can unleash their creativity and benefit from a space that is focused on collaboration and teamwork.”

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