We developed this “campus in a building” in partnership with the University of Central Missouri, Lee’s Summit School District, and local industry participants to flexibly serve the needs of the 21st century student, fostering skills for the jobs of the future.
Students in the program begin accruing college credit while still in high school, allowing them to graduate from UCM in two years, debt-free, with job-ready skills. The building serves as a “base camp” for these tightly-knit cohorts of students. The space is organized in quadrants, each serving an academic department. Circulation space is reimagined as “Ideation Commons” to link departments, support project collaboration, and give students a place to call home.
The result is a dynamic environment more reminiscent of the modern workplace than school, supporting the cross-disciplinary collaborative skills essential to professional growth, while providing a palette of space options for each learner.
I want the entire country to notice the innovation happening here [at Missouri Innovation Campus], and I want other colleges to take a look at what's being done here as well.
Architect of Record: DLR Group
General Contractor: McCown Gordon Construction
Photographer: Michael Robinson