Sited at the northern edge of the campus ring road, the Instructional Centre sits in close proximity to the popular Hazel McCallion Academic Learning Centre which Perkins + Will Canada also designed. Together, these buildings frame a new entry plaza and create a dynamic new hub of student life. Clad in copper, the building is a complement and foil to McCallion’s wood exterior and is in keeping with the naturalized campus setting.

While University enrollment is growing, classroom inventory had not increased since 2004. There was a critical need for more learning space, for spaces that engage students in learning and encourage collaboration and for space that is environmentally sustainable. This building increases classroom space on campus by an additional 50 percent.

The center brings a range of classrooms, lecture halls and open-use computing spaces to the north end of campus. Organized into “teaching towers”, the academic spaces are stacked vertically in three blocks linked by a 2-story gallery space along the building’s southern façade. Student lounges, a café and quiet study areas are housed in this perimeter space with light streaming through expansive windows and views out to the campus playing field and a verge of mature hardwoods.

The center is targeting LEED Gold certification with such initiatives as geothermal heating and cooling, storm water retention and treatment and a substantial photovoltaic awning system.