George Mason University to Construct Health Sciences Building

FAIRFAX, Va. — George Mason University broke ground earlier this summer on a new $73 million health sciences building to debut in 2017. The 160,000-square-foot Academic VII/Research III building is part of George Mason University’s ongoing strategic plan, which includes renovating several academic buildings.

Stephen Penhoet AIA, LEED AP, associate principal and project manager of the project, spoke to School Construction News about the new facility for George Mason University. Penhoet works in the Washington, D.C., office of New York-based Perkins Eastman, the architect on the project.

Q: What is the project’s main goal?

Penhoet: George Mason University’s College of Health & Human Services is currently located in an aging, undersized building and needs to consolidate its growing program in a larger, dedicated facility that will be seen as a model for future campus buildings. The university is also dramatically short of correctly sized and equipped classrooms, and Academic VII will incorporate numerous classrooms that support the latest theories and techniques in current teaching pedagogies. Finally, the building and its surrounding site development is key in completing a new north gateway as part of the new North Sector Master Plan for the Fairfax campus. Once Health and Human Services vacates their current buildings (located in the heart of the campus), the university will either fully rehabilitate or replace them.

Q: What are some of the building’s key design elements?

Penhoet: The building’s overall massing defines a new, formal entry to the university from the north and features a courtyard that faces the oldest parts of the campus to the south. Additionally, the proportions of the building reflect best sustainability practices and allow for the most advantageous solar exposure. The interior is organized along an east-west spine that promotes formal and informal interaction between students, faculty and staff and allows for views to the adjacent open green space. There are a variety of uses in the building including student administration, classrooms, offices, laboratories, medical clinical suites, a cafe and teaching kitchens. Finally, the building features heights — at two-, three- and five-story sections — that house diverse program elements, providing variety in the overall massing as well as creating separate, identifiable entries and uses.

Q: What about the project stands out compared to others you have completed?

Penhoet: The design process has involved many more stakeholders, users and facilities managers than one would find in a typical higher education facility, and the programming effort of interviews, space planning and owner coordination was detailed and lengthy. The project is also unusual in that the building advances sustainable design aspects from what had been proposed in Perkins Eastman’s Master Plan for the new North Sector by adjustments in orientation, glazing and material palette. The design also establishes a new, large outdoor courtyard designed for informal study, group gatherings and university events.

Q: How does designing for health sciences compare to designing for other educational departments?

Penhoet: The College of Health and Human Services features a School of Nursing that has its own classroom, simulation, IT and conference room requirements. Additionally, the project includes the college’s clinical research facility, which hosts a strong public outreach program for clinical research, public education and student recruitment. Academic VII’s planning and layout is intentionally inviting for all members of the university as well as the general public, and has an open, inviting character, supporting easy access on all sides.

Q: What feedback did you receive from faculty and students, and how was it incorporated into the design?

Penhoet: The review process by all of the stakeholders was very thorough and students, faculty and staff were invited to comment on the program and design during the early phases. In general, the entire university community is excited about the prospect of a new, state-of-the-art facility that will enhance and define a new front door for the Fairfax campus and will set a new standard for sustainability, flexibility and long-term value.