PROJECT Anne Arundel Community College Health and Life Sciences Building
ARCHITECT SmithGroup
LOCATION  Arnold, Maryland US

PROJECT COMPLETION DATE  6/1/2021
ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN TEAM  SmithGroup – Architect of Record, Architecture, Interior Design, Mechanical, Electrical, and Fire Protection Engineering, Lab and Space Planning, Team Members: Greg Mella, Lori Cappuccio, Chris Purdy, Josh Vacca, Patricia Halaby, Jamison Caldwell, Paul Urbanek, David Lang, Dennis Daisey, Joanne Valencia, Samantha Kim, Dafeng Cai, Angie Peretti, and Kyle Lehman
OWNER/CLIENT Anne Arundel Community College
CONTRACTOR/CONSTRUCTION MANAGER  Whiting-Turner Contracting Company / Jeff Hossfeld
PHOTOGRAPHER  James Ewing
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT Mahan Rykiel
CIVIL ENGINEER Site Resources
STRUCTURAL ENGINEER A+F
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ELECTRICAL ENGINEER
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SUMMARY DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT
For 60 years, Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) has led the way as one of Maryland’s premier higher education institutions, fulfilling its mission to promote life-long learning to a diverse community—from first generation college students to working professionals. Home to several top ranked schools and programs, such as the #1 ranked nursing program in Maryland, the existing campus, however, did not support a dedicated science hub. Further, the campus’s 1960’s-era buildings required significant updates to support the 21st century technologies and learning environments befitting AACC’s first-class programs. Now, with the new Health and Life Sciences Building (HLSB), the Life Science and Biology programs are joined under one roof and the College has a LEED Gold facility on par with the caliber of its academic programs.

Paramount to the project’s success was creating a physical sense of place so students, faculty, and staff, most of whom commute, would feel a connection to campus and have on-site locations beyond classrooms and labs to study and meet with peers. In this way, the project fosters a sense of community, open and accessible to all the College’s constituents. The new HLSB, along with campus-wide green space site improvements and a redirected ring road have transformed the East end of the campus, anchoring what is now a clearly defined Science Quad, while creating a new gateway to the College.

From the outset, the design process employed climate analysis and conceptual performance modeling to optimize orientation, sun-shading, glazing properties, daylighting, and the thermal envelope. These passive strategies, along with a highly efficient radiant cooling and dedicated outside air system result in a 35% energy savings.

During concept design, a sustainability workshop enabled project stakeholders to establish a sustainability vision for the project: human health. This informed the use of biophilic concepts throughout the project. Natural materials, such as wood, and textures emulate those native to the Chesapeake Bay region. A glass wall between the interior learning commons—the Collaboration Gallery—and adjacent science quadrangle dissolves the boundary between interior and exterior. More than 25% of the materials used in the HLSB are responsibly sourced, including products with high recycled-content, salvaged materials, and FSC-certified wood. Low flow plumbing fixtures reduce indoor water consumption by 42% and drought tolerant landscaping eliminates the need for irrigation. Bio-retention gardens accept all roof storm water, promoting infiltration and improving overall water quality.

Throughout the building, biology and computer labs, a Simulation Center, a white-box theater, a greenhouse, and a 160-seat lecture hall promote interdisciplinary collaboration and feature flexible spaces to mimic real-world scenarios. Rooms dynamically change via operable partitions for small or group events. Designed to promote a culture of learning, the new HLSB is forward-thinking in both its approach to educating and training the next generation of science, nursing, and health care professionals and its commitment to the environment.

JURY COMMENTS (If applicable)

We found this to be a compelling design solution inside and out. The blurring of glass and concrete panels through vertical texture on the faced and the generous use of carefully detailed wood on the interior create a building that is at once sophisticated and welcoming. Beyond its beauty, this project went further than any other pursuing each aspect of the AIA Framework within the constraints of the budget. Installing significant native landscape on site, integrating chilled beam and DOAS technologies to minimize operational carbon, and using recycled materials were just a few of the extra efforts enabling the project to achieve LEED Gold instead of its required LEED Silver. The jury commends the balanced approach.

MEDIA FOR DOWNLOAD
Project PDF

IMAGES (Captions and Photographer Credit)
1. The building is in use day—and night—to meet the needs of students and faculty and has become a campus beacon. Photo: ©James Ewing
2. The project’s massing is articulated through scale, volume, and materials—brick, timber, metal panels, and terra-cotta cladding—as the new structure responds to the site, adjacent buildings, and the campus creating the anchor for this new Science Quad. Photo: ©James Ewing
3. The Collaboration Gallery provides an on-campus study and gathering space for students, faculty, and staff. The double-height glass wall allows natural light to permeate the space, while dissolving the boundary between exterior and interior, reinforcing the building’s connection to the campus. Photo: ©James Ewing
4. The connecting stair in the Collaboration Gallery encourages mobility for building occupants as they move from floor-to-floor and wing-to-wing. The use of sustainably sourced wood is an integral part of the material palette and natural interior finishes. Photo: ©James Ewing
5. In the Tutoring Center, just off the Learning Commons, a highly efficient radiant cooling ceiling panel system provides space conditioning. Photo: ©James Ewing
6. Study Area on the top floor of the Biology Wing looks out over the campus. Wood-slatted ceilings continue the natural material palette found throughout the project. Photo: ©James Ewing
7. The Simulation Center in the Health Sciences Wing provides students and faculty with 21st-century teaching and learning environments where students train in a setting that mimics the medical facilities and equipment they will encounter as professionals. Photo: ©James Ewing
8. External sunshades, fritted glass, and terra-cotta panels provide texture and dimension for the building’s south façade and wing, which houses the Biology Department. Photo: ©James Ewing