Francis Tuttle Technology Center, Danforth Campus

At first glance, the split-level building is set back from the main road, nestled into a site that drops 55 feet from the northwest corner to the southwest corner, to minimize the impact of the height of the building on the adjacent residential neighborhoods. The exterior materials are honest in nature—a mixture of wood, concrete, and stone that flow naturally into the interior of the building.

Students and visitors enter and are directed by clerestory windows into a main circulation hub, met by a glass-railed bridge overlooking a light-filled rotunda.

The rotunda mimics a restful zone with space to work, connect, and enjoy an abundance of natural light, while encouraging instructors to break out and make use of the grand stairs for student seating—a unique option for energized learning.

The program encourages and facilitates the STEM Focused+Design Thinking process, an approach that centers on the principles of empathy, expansive thinking, and experimentation.

Transparency into the building reveals activities, and exposed natural elements inspire inquisitive minds.

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Francis Tuttle Technology Center, Danforth Campus

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