University of Washington Foster School of Business PACCAR Hall

Vision
At the core of the Foster School of Business’ transformation is the concept of integrated communities, where the social environment, natural environment and campus context are embraced as interrelated influences in the architectural experience. The central atrium within PACCAR Hall works as a collector of community activity and social heart of the school, perceptually as well as functionally. Common areas are organized as a series of interconnected spaces that function in many different combinations, from small groups to large gatherings, encompassing a full spectrum of informal student activities, regular programs and special events.

Site and Program
The new Foster School of Business converts the school’s existing collection of outdated facilities—through new construction and renovation—into a cohesive education complex that embodies its educational focus of leadership development, strategic thinking, and collaboration. The project includes two new, interconnected buildings—PACCAR Hall, as well as a second phase, Dempsey Hall. Renovation of the subterranean library repositions the library’s primary entrance to link directly with the central activity zone of the new school.

Design
The design responds to the program’s strong emphasis on social connectivity and its active central campus site with a high degree of porosity—in terms of both visual and functional relationships. A four-story, daylit atrium runs the entire length of PACCAR Hall. Multiple entrances are knitted into the pedestrian flow of the campus, with views, topography and landscape embraced as integrated elements in the architectural experience. The exterior expression is a direct response to the functional needs of modern business education and environmental influences, while responding to adjacent historic campus buildings with compatible materiality, scale and proportion.