Completion Date: 2009
Square Footage: 110,000

Awards:
Educational Interiors Showcase Collegiate Citation, 2010
American School & University

The Stern School is located on the edge of the Greenwich Village Historic District. Finding new space in such a dense urban environment has long been a critical issue for the university. The Stern Concourse Project has found and transformed some of the least desirable spaces in the university's inventory into some of the most exciting. Unpleasant and under-utilized underground hallways and classrooms have been retrofitted to create a vibrant academic community.

Skylights inserted into the grade-level public plaza bring natural light, transparency and a sense of openness into below-ground concourses, classrooms, lecture halls, lounges and gathering spaces promoting interaction among students and faculty. A 3-story atrium and interconnecting stairs reinforce the sense of spaciousness and foster connectivity. Phasing was complex and required that the school's operations be kept ongoing with minimal disruptions during renovation.

Our team of architects and specialists in renovation strategies, interior design and branded environments, worked closely with the school's constituencies. We held interviews, focus groups and "visual listening" sessions with students, professors and administrators. From the information gathered, we developed a design that projects a confident, energetic and collegial tone that builds upon the school's unique identity and its diverse mix of programs, students and activities. The project has reinvented the physical image the school presents to the city and to the global business community. It has become a place that students want to engage with one another, learn and linger.