Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) has been chosen to design a new teaching and learning facility for Barnard College - Columbia University’s world-renowned liberal arts college for women. The selection committee chose SOM after deeming them the best candidate in three categories: “a history of creative and innovative architecture,” a proven recorded on similar academic projects, and “an internal commitment to woman’s leadership reflected by women holding key roles in the firm.”
“We are thrilled to partner with SOM to develop this important new campus landmark,” said Barnard President Debora Spar. “It was crucial to find a firm that would work well with our community throughout the design and construction process, and SOM is the perfect choice. Barnard has a small campus and each building plays a vital role in our community. I am confident that this new building will have a transformative impact on our campus and move with us squarely into the future.”
SOM will now begin the schematic design process, mapping the main elements of the new building, including:
- A 21st century library;
- Innovative learning labs, including a movement lab and empirical reasoning lab;
- Computational science labs;
- New homes for selected academic departments;
- Conference facilities;
- Café and dining space;
- Group study spaces; and
- State of the art classrooms.
