Organizations like the elite universities on the East Coast of the US that demand tens of thousands of dollars of their students every year in the form of tuition fees should, of course, offer them in return not only a first-class education. An appropriate working environment may be expected as well. Columbia University in New York has taken an important step in this direction with its Roy and Diana Vagelos Education Center.
In the 14-storey glass tower by Diller Scofidio + Renfro and their partner architects Gensler, students of medicine learn their professional skills in lectures and practical exercises. Nothing about this new structure is reminiscent of the uniformity and sterility that often characterize establishments for medical education. The architects have set aside almost a third of the floor area for cafes, lounges, terraces and other informal realms for learning and for exchanges among students.
In the 14-storey glass tower by Diller Scofidio + Renfro and their partner architects Gensler, students of medicine learn their professional skills in lectures and practical exercises. Nothing about this new structure is reminiscent of the uniformity and sterility that often characterize establishments for medical education. The architects have set aside almost a third of the floor area for cafes, lounges, terraces and other informal realms for learning and for exchanges among students.