For the first time in more than 50 years, UC Santa Barbara has started construction on a state-of-the-art classroom building.
It’s the first building dedicated to classroom space since 1967 and will increase the campus’ classroom seating capacity by 35%, or 2,000 seats, according to Julie Hendricks, campus architect and director of campus Design and Construction Services.
“The university registrar has been struggling to schedule classes into the existing classroom inventory for over a decade,” Hendricks told Noozhawk. “The new building will create an efficient, safe and sustainable facility that serves the needs of the campus functionally and programmatically.”
The classroom building project includes five tiered lecture halls, three active learning classrooms and 20 discussion classrooms, Hendricks said. The project is composed of two main volumes surrounding a central circulation corridor that runs from east to west, linking the extension of the Davidson Library mall to the science walk, she added.
“This open-air paseo interconnects the functions of the two building masses, providing outdoor terraces, stairs, bridges and collaboration spaces that are designed to encourage serendipitous interactions and collaboration among students and faculty,” Hendricks said.
The lobby space of the new building will support lecture hall and classroom queuing for hourly turnover and exiting of classes, and will serve as a location where students and faculty can engage after lectures, according to Hendricks. Most of the outdoor circulation areas will be exposed to the sun throughout the day, ensuring thermal comfort for most of the year, she added.
There will be a guardrail system that encloses the exterior circulation spaces and features a bar-height counter that is meant to encourage collaboration and informal study, and also includes electrical outlets for device charging.
“The design creates a flexible learning environment that facilitates student interaction and problem-solving activities with electronic and digital media, allowing information to stream to and from teachers and students,” Hendricks said. “Active learning classrooms are designed to support project-based teaching that is formulated around group and student participation and focuses on project-based and team-oriented learning.”
The site encompasses about three acres of the campus and was chosen for its central campus location, Hendricks said. The new building will sit at the heart of campus, south of and adjacent to Davidson Library and the Bioengineering Building, and north of and adjacent to the Psychology Building.
“This location provides good building access and site circulation, including the bike path, pedestrian path and plaza, bike parking and building service,” Hendricks said.
The UC Board of Regents approved construction for the building in May 2019 and broke ground in October 2020, according to Hendricks.
“The idea for this project was born out of a series of lunch meetings that the chancellor held with faculty four years ago,” she said. “These conversations, along with input from students, parents, faculty and staff, made it clear that the greatest need was state-of-the-art classroom space.”
The new building is a state-funded project that is being supported by appropriations from the 2019-20 State Budget Act earmarked specifically for the construction of the classroom building, according to Hendricks.
“Across academic disciplines, faculty agree these classrooms are vital to developing the curriculum that teaches the students of today, as well as those in the future,” Hendricks said.
The entire project is anticipated to be complete by spring 2023.
— Noozhawk staff writer Jade Martinez-Pogue can be reached at jmartinez-pogue@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
