Learning Resource Center – Suffolk County Community College

The Learning Resource Center, an innovative state-of-the-art library that provides a vibrant collection of study spaces organized around a dramatic social stair on the Michael J. Grant Campus of Suffolk County Community College in Brentwood, New York, takes its place at the center of the campus, at the confluence of major pedestrian pathways between the Caumsett Student Center and the Health/Sports/Education Center, and between the major parking lots for this commuter college. A simple mass of nine cubes arranged in a three-by-three grid accommodates the library program on two floors. Portions of the cubes are either removed or expanded to create an interplay between negative and positive space that allows the Learning Resource Center to act as a prism that casts sunlight deep into the Learning Resource Center throughout the day. A central lantern rises above the building to create an iconic expression on the campus skyline, a beacon visible from all corners of the campus.

The Learning Resource Center presents opportunities for team-based learning, experiential learning, and problem-based learning by providing a variety of learning environments: group study rooms, seminar rooms, flat-floor computer classrooms, open tutoring classrooms, and a 100-seat lecture hall. At the heart of the building, beneath the lantern, lies the Information Commons, which accommodates computer workstations, technology and reference help desks, and casual reading areas. The Center for Academic Excellence is on axis with the Information Commons and flanked by the College’s Writing Center. The College’s Boardroom, Faculty Athenaeum, offices, and Reading Room occupy the second floor, as do the library stacks, which are lined with carrels for individual study.

The building enclosure consists of an aluminum and glass curtainwall and white terra cotta, a departure from the red clay brick typically found on campus, to express the primacy of this learning center. A ventilated rain screen façade, green roof, and photo optic lighting controls are a few design features that incorporate a sustainable approach.

The Learning Resource Center has received honors and accolades from a number of professional organizations and awards programs, including the Chicago Athenaeum, the Architizer A+ Awards, the Society of American Registered Architects, and various chapters of the American Institute of Architects.

ikon.5 architects served as Design Architect for the Learning Resource Center. Wiedersum Associates Architects served as Architect-of-Record.