The Liberty University Science Building is a 135,000 SF facility that brings together the Department of Biology & Chemistry and the Department of Health Professions (Exercise Science, Public Health, Kinesiology, and Athletic Training).
The building features cutting-edge teaching laboratories and prep spaces clustered with research labs, seminar rooms, and faculty office space. This clustering creates neighborhoods throughout the building where multiple types and scales of learning spaces are just around the corner and faculty are able to be both near their labs and accessible to students.
The design of the Science Building encourages and draws out moments of study, reflection, and learning, from the quiet of a window study nook, to the interaction between students and teachers around a lab bench, to the dramatic 300-seat auditorium which links the two departments housed in the building. Labs are equipped with the latest technology to accommodate a variety of teaching methods and learning styles. Natural daylight floods the labs through generous windows looking out to LU’s Academic Lawn. The building is designed to facilitate and increase interdisciplinary collaboration, interaction, and research. Scientists and students can continue discussions at flexible lounges on each floor, where space is provided for both individual and group work. Throughout the building, integrated scientific displays are showcased to help express and create identity for a community of learners dedicated to scientific inquiry.
“It is so emotional seeing the magnitude of improvement in terms of what we can offer the students. A lot of effort went into the design of the building to consider convenience and safety and to provide real-world experience.”
Chair, Department of Biology & Chemistry
The H-shaped Science Building opens to Science courtyards, elevated porches, and the campus beyond. The building’s two bars of lab space are connected by a transparent central nucleus of multistory public spaces, flexible classrooms, and the auditorium. Glassy atria at the north and south of the nucleus open the Sciences to the University landscape and provide indoor/outdoor spaces for interaction. This public center of gravity welcomes students to the Science Building and communicates the spirit of collaboration among faculty, students, and researchers across disciplines, as well as between the sciences and the greater community.
Sited on Liberty’s Academic Lawn opposite the Library and Student Center, the Science Building serves as a vibrant academic center and sets a new standard of excellence for this growing institution. With its prominent campus location, the new Liberty University Science Building brings the Sciences into view.
Client: Liberty University
Location: Lynchburg, VA
Discipline: Academics
Completion: 2015
Size: 135,000 SF
