University of San Francisco, Harney Science Center Innovation Hive

Science learning within the university setting has changed. The focus has shifted toward interdisciplinary exploration that trains students to be innovators of the future, working to solve Grand Challenges of humanity in a collaborative environment. This adaptive reuse project launched the first phase of a new engineering program at the University of San Francisco while also providing a blueprint for continued growth through a master plan that repurposes a 110,000-square-foot building of the past into a building for the future.

Phase 1 developed the heart of the program to be design-centered and human-interfacing with a collaboration hive and makerspace at the entrance of the five-story building. The hive is an informal learning space, porous and flexible to allow interdisciplinary exchange. It is a visible hub functioning as an academic stage for real-time, collaborative problem solving. Continuing to activate the building’s busy entry level, the hive connects to the makerspace which invites new voices to participate in science and discovery, supporting a sense of community on shared endeavors in a hands-on learning environment. This prototyping suite features a materials lab, advanced fabrication lab, and ideation nodes knit together so students can form project teams, build experiments, design code, and simulate products and processes of real-life R&D centers they will soon lead as professionals. The renovation honors the original structure while reinventing and right-sizing collaborative space to strengthen the identity of the college of arts and science and the dynamic relationship between teacher and student.