Page 29 - College Planning & Management, July/August 2017

Facilities CAMPUS SPACES
A Framework for Learning
A bold vision for campus redesign is navigating old and new at Syracuse University.
BY MARY ANNE OCAMPO AND DENNIS PIEPRZ, HON. ASLA
SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY HAS LONG BEEN KNOWN as “The Campus on the Hill,” aptly named for its high perch, sited in proximity to downtown Syracuse, NY. The
private institution was founded in the late 1800s and today the university spans 680 acres across two campuses: Main Campus and South Campus, a mile apart. Since the original design of the Campus on the Hill, Syracuse has grown into a much larger campus with an eclectic mix of architecture. Its most historic and grandest buildings originate from the 1880s and occupy a linear stretch of academic buildings in the heart of campus, affectionately called Old Row.
The newer buildings around campus reflect the ways educa- tion has changed through the years, which necessitated shifts in design and planning. On the traditional 19th-century campus, learning was thought to happen in classrooms only. Buildings like those along Old Row created a completely centralized hub. The 21st-century campus, by contrast, facilitates learning in all kinds of spaces, and the distribution and design variation in Syracuse’s
newer buildings reflect that shift.
On campuses all across the nation, living/learning design and
planning approaches take advantage of hallways, campus greens, innovation labs and residence hall open areas that allow for impromptu meetups and flexible configurations. Undoubtedly, the now ubiquitous laptop and expanded WiFi reach have had some bearing on this trend, freeing up faculty and students to adopt a more nomadic approach to their day to day activities.
Syracuse, like many peer institutions, is actively cultivating this move to learning everywhere, employing a number of strate- gies to encourage both density and porousness.
Working together, the Sasaki design team and the Syracuse Board of Trustees had the future of the Campus on the Hill in mind when they began work on a new Campus Framework plan for the university. Acting as a guide for the campus’ development as the university evolves, the Framework plan imagines a campus that acts as a catalyst of diverse, inclusive, accessible and academically
JULY/AUGUST 2017 / COLLEGE PLANNING & MANAGEMENT 29
IMAGES COURTESY OF SASAKI