Austin College president Marjorie Hass welcomed trustees, distinguished alumni, and other guests at a June 3 groundbreaking ceremony for the IDEA Center, the Sherman, Texas, college’s new science and technology complex.

Twelve years in the planning, the 103,000 s.f. Center will emphasize breaking down boundaries between disciplines, housing the departments of physics, chemistry, biology, environmental studies, math, and computer science in one facility. A centerpiece of the new academic building is a domed observatory, with a 24” telescope that will be among the best among the country’s liberal arts institutions.

The IDEA ...[more]

The University of New Mexico’s Science & Mathematics Learning Center in Albuquerque was dedicated on March 4, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and building tour. University Regent Carolyn Abeita and President David Schmidly were joined by political and community leaders and senior administrators for the event.

“I’m very excited to see the vision of the Center come to life,” said Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Brenda Claiborne. “Not only does the center provide fully equipped teaching labs and classrooms aimed at engaging freshmen and sophomores in science and mathematics, but it ...[more]

Eckstein Hall, the new home to Marquette University’s Law School, has received LEED Silver certification from the US Green Building Council just months after the building’s completion.

Marquette and the project team were committed to constructing an energy-efficient building and receiving LEED certification.

“As we began the process of designing Eckstein Hall, our first priority was to build a facility that would enable us to provide an exceptional legal education,” said Joseph D. Kearney, dean of the Law School. “But as we began talking to alumni, students, and others, it ...[more]

It’s official! Salem State University (Salem, MA) broke ground for its new library and learning commons on December 7. University president Patricia Maguire Meservey and Jacob Segal, chair of the university’s board of trustees, were joined by local political leaders and top state education officials in a ceremony on the university’s north campus.

The 124,000 square foot facility replaces the previous campus library, which was closed in late 2007 for concerns about its structural safety. The four-story library will include instructional labs, group study rooms, and a testing center, and ...[more]

Courtney (Stern) Janes, an interior designer with Shepley Bulfinch, is profiled in the latest issue of Suffolk University’s alumni magazine.

In the article, Interior Motives, Courtney (Suffolk MAID ’08) discusses interior design, her work at Shepley Bulfinch; and what it means to have a personal commitment to sustainability and to work in a firm that makes it a priority.

Suffolk magazine article

Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale-New Haven Hospital and Sherman Hospital are among five healthcare facilities recognized for their environmentally responsive design in “Code Green: Examining the Prognosis for Sustainability in Healthcare,” in the August issue of Eco-Structure magazine.

Sherman Hospital opened its new healthcare campus in Elgin, Illinois, in December. The hospital’s 15-acre geothermal lake, which is expected to save the hospital more than $1 million annually over conventional heating and cooling costs, was a creative response that began with the need to manage storm water runoff for the 15-acre site and ...[more]

There’s been a lot of discussion lately about changes to LEED. Are new credentialing requirements too complicated and cumbersome? Are the efforts of the USGBC to focus on energy efficiency in the new version of LEED enough to ensure green buildings are truly green? Everyone seems to be waiting to see what changes recently introduced by the USGBC mean for the future of LEED. Let’s step aside from all of that for a moment and look an outside influence that may be more important.

A draft of the International Green Construction Code (IGCC) ...[more]