Within its five floors, the building brings together several compute-intensive academic and research disciplines that are hallmarks of what has become the Fourth Industrial Revolution. It brings together several student services, previously spread across campus, creating the Student Academic Services Center: a “one-stop-shop” link for students looking for everything from academic advice to career planning.
The building also provides a convenient and accessible link between the main campus, located at the top of Boynton Hill, and the lower campus, particularly the student residences on the east side of the campus and the academic and research programs at Gateway Park. In addition, Unity Hall, with its project-based academic programs and cutting-edge research activities aimed at solving complex global problems and preparing students for careers that may not yet exist, will help the university. to forge strong relationships with industry, academia, and government partners in the United States and around the world.
“Unity Hall, one of the most important buildings on the growing WPI campus, represents a historic commitment by this university to the future of goal-oriented STEM education and research and to meet the needs of our students and the wider WPI community, ”said WPI President Laurie Leshin.
“This magnificent building also reflects the growing importance of collaboration in this increasingly interconnected and interdependent world, where the nature of work and the needs of the workforce change in profound and unpredictable ways. To prepare students to excel in a future where the majority of professions have not yet been invented, and to help our researchers tackle problems from a range of emerging disciplines, we must be able to bring together expertise. , ideas and innovation in new and revolutionary fields. combinations. This is the central idea embodied in Unity Hall.
“Unity Hall, one of the most important buildings on the growing WPI campus, represents a historic commitment by this university to the future of goal-oriented STEM education and research and to meet the needs of our students and the WPI community at large. “-Laurie Leshin
The new building has received significant philanthropic support from alumni, administrators and friends, including foundations and trusts. In total, WPI received over $ 19 million from 419 donors for the new building, all in support of Beyond These Towers: The Campaign for WPI, the university’s $ 500 million campaign. These commitments include a $ 5 million pledge from the Alden Trust in the form of the Alden Trust Challenge. The trust will fulfill its commitment when WPI raises $ 20 million from alumni and directors; just over $ 13 million has been raised for the challenge to date. Commitments to the new building also include those of alumni to honor Dean van Alstyne’s legacy in the new integrated university student services center.
Shaping the Fourth Industrial Revolution
WPI was born in the midst of the First Industrial Revolution, which saw the mechanization of industry and transportation, and its faculty, students and alumni made essential contributions to the second (electrical) and third (computer) industrial revolutions. Building on the wired and wireless connections that link billions of smart devices, the Fourth Industrial Revolution is shaping advancements in a number of interdisciplinary offshoots of advanced computer science and fostering innovative, far-reaching solutions to problems. in areas such as healthcare, energy, transportation and the built environment.
In Unity Hall, the Fourth Industrial Revolution will be represented by labs, collaborative spaces and faculty offices for six interdisciplinary programs: architectural engineering, bioinformatics and computational biology, data science, interactive media and game development, science and technology. learning, and Robotics Engineering. These disciplines marry advancements in computer science, science and engineering to tackle pressing global issues through interdisciplinary research and WPI’s distinctive project-based approach to education.
“Unity Hall embodies a number of ideas that are central to WPI’s approach to education and research,” said Winston “Wole” Soboyejo, senior vice president and provost. “First, it embodies the practical application of knowledge for the greater good that underpins our groundbreaking academic program and also permeates our goal-oriented research and project work. Second, it embodies the spirit of collaboration and interdisciplinary work found throughout our campus. In this awe-inspiring and beautiful new facility, these hallmarks of the WPI experience will come together as students, faculty and staff help bring to life the ideas, innovations and technology that will transform and improve our world. “
Robotic Engineering, a field that fuses computer science, electrical engineering and mechanical engineering, is moving some of its research facilities from 85 Prescott Street to Unity Hall. (It will retain its teaching labs in the Atwater Kent labs and the Innovation Studio.) Faculty and student researchers in the department will now work in two spacious labs and a dedicated project space on the first and second levels of the new building.
Research in bioinformatics and computational biology, data science and learning science and technology will move from the buildings of the Fuller and Salisbury laboratories to new laboratory spaces at the third level. Architectural engineering and interactive media and game development will both gain new studio and lab space on the second level.
“In this awe-inspiring and beautiful new facility, these hallmarks of the WPI experience will come together as students, faculty and staff help bring to life the ideas, innovations and technology that will transform and improve our world. “-Winston” Wole “Soboyejo
The building will also house a new semiconductor security research center recently funded by a $ 1 million grant from the Massachusetts Collaborative Research and Development Grants Program. The new center, which includes the first high-sensitivity, high-resolution semiconductor failure analysis system in the Northeast, will focus on the safety of semiconductors and hardware critical to key innovation industries.
In addition to the labs, offices, and dedicated meeting spaces, Unity Hall will house several shared spaces, including a lab, lounges, conference rooms, and collaboration spaces, as well as a first-level workshop including a dedicated facility. 3D printing and a painting room. Five new classrooms on the fourth and fifth levels, all with flexible seating designed to facilitate active learning and project work in the classroom, will significantly expand the teaching facilities on campus.
Serving the needs of students
Visitors entering Unity Hall on the fifth (highest) level will meet the new Academic Services Center for Students, where students will find, in one location, the Accessibility Services Office, Academic Advisory Office, Center Career Development Center and the Registrar’s Office — previously located in two buildings in different parts of the campus. The new center is designed to make it easier for students to take advantage of a host of academic services and resources that can help them navigate their journey through WPI and beyond, according to Philip Clay, senior vice president of business. students.
“This new center is designed to improve the success of our students and provide them with convenient access to these essential resources,” said Clay. “Here, in one place, they can interact with professionals who are dedicated to helping them make the most of their educational program and the opportunities available to them at WPI, who can guide them to information and learning. ” assistance they need to make the most of their time on campus, and that can help them focus on the many ways they can use their education to make the world a better place in their careers after graduation.
“Here, in one place, they can interact with professionals who are dedicated to helping them make the most of their educational program and the opportunities available to them at WPI.” -Philippe Clay
In addition to offices, reception areas, and meeting and ‘regroup’ spaces, the new center includes a flexible exam monitoring room, which is part of the accessibility services office’s mission to provide housing for students who might need alternative framework or other test-based housing. and to ensure that every student has the opportunity to achieve their full potential.
A commitment to sustainability
Built by Consigli Construction Co. of Milford, Mass., With project management services from KVA Boston, Unity Hall is the latest WPI building designed to fulfill the university’s long-standing commitment to sustainability and environmental stewardship. . In fact, the building is on track to receive LEED Gold status, according to Eric Beattie, vice president for campus planning and facilities. (Developed by the US Green Building Council, LEED certification provides a framework for the design, construction, operation and performance of green buildings.)
“Unity Hall incorporates state-of-the-art energy efficiency and water conservation systems, as well as design features to take full advantage of natural light,” explains Beattie. “The building’s ventilation system delivers all fresh air to spaces without recirculation, and building air testing has met stringent LEED requirements for indoor air quality. The materials have been carefully selected to include recycled content and the construction methods followed have been designed to reduce waste wherever possible. In addition, the building spaces have been designed in a flexible and efficient manner to maximize their use and contain as much as possible the overall size of the building.
Beattie says the location of Unity Hall required the removal of several mature oak trees. The timber harvested from these trees was chopped and used in several creative feature walls, furniture, and building recognition signage. The roof of the building was designed to accommodate photovoltaic solar panels, which generate renewable energy. Their installation will be carried out under a separate energy contract.
In keeping with the building’s social justice theme and as a commitment to the sustainability of the local economy and community, Beattie adds that “targets have been set and exceeded to employ significant numbers of women and other minorities. in the project construction workforce ”.