Business Leadership Building

Building Today for Business TomorrowCollege of Business

Planning a Business Leadership Building to Reflect a Student-Centered, Public Research University

PS A007964B 10/09

Planning the new building required an underlying set of objectives and goals. The overarching objective of the college’s planning group was to create a building that would embody the ideal of a student-centered, public research university. To this end, secondary objectives included a building that would: Enhance learning • Build community • Promote research and interdisciplinarity • Brand the college as a leader in business education.

With a student body of approximately 5,650 students, a faculty of 112, and a staff of 51, the UNT College of Business is one of the largest colleges of business in the nation. To accommodate its programs and multiple class sections, the college currently occupies two buildings in their entirety and space in a third. It holds classes in an even wider variety of buildings. With a projected college size of more than 7,500 students and 140 faculty, the new business building will be built for the future. UNT’s new Business Leadership Building will occupy 180,000 square feet, contain 24 classrooms of various sizes, and more than 222 offices for faculty, staff, and doctoral students.

It is a rare opportunity indeed to re-imagine the architecture of a college in a way that not only reinforces its time-honored mission, but also leads to a new way of teaching. With a new site on Highland Avenue – significantly placed adjacent to the axis of the Hurley Administration Building at the heart of the UNT campus – and a university administration and College of Business leadership committed to excellence, a new and exciting vision for the future of business education has emerged.

With a student body exceeding 5,600 undergraduate and graduate students, a growing population of area professionals studying at the school and a large faculty and administration, the school is in essence a small city. To organize all the necessary classrooms, lecture halls, computer labs and advising spaces into a single monolithic structure would have created a building of vast size – and thus strong identity – but little sense of place. To address the vast scale of the school, and to create a central and iconic gathering space where students, faculty and professionals could meet and interact, the project was reconceived as a series of discrete buildings surrounding a public square. A direct descendant of the Roman forum, this great public space reminds us that at the core of all business is human interaction.

Each building within this small urban complex maintains a material integrity that clearly identifies the individual structures, strongly links the college to the campus and its history, and helps bring a human scale to the city-like composition. Made of Texas limestone, brick that matches the color and texture of the Hurley Administration Building, and water-white clear glass, the exterior materials are brought into the public spaces, reinforcing both the clarity of each individual building and the public square-like nature of the central atrium space.

Design Statement by Polshek Partnership Architects

A great challenge for any college of this size – with a large and highly specialized faculty – is how to encourage relationships across departmental lines. It was determined early on to house the entire faculty on a single floor, and to centralize the shared services and vertical circulation in order to better foster interdisciplinary interaction among faculty. To avoid dead ends and closed wings of offices, the faculty floor was conceived as a giant “figure 8.” Essentially a large rectangular floor with two courtyards within, the scheme provides natural light and views for both interior and perimeter offices, spaces for faculty interaction at the meeting of naturally lit corridors and green courtyard space accessible to all faculty.

This single floor structure, located at the very top of the project, acts as a giant parasol, protecting the buildings and public spaces below from the sun and rain, and acting as a unifying element for this city of business. Made of soft-white and clear glass, and standing-seam zinc, the colors and material quality relate strongly to the traditional roof materials and colors of the campus, particularly the Hurley Administration Building. Articulated as an almost floating element – reinforcing its reading as an elegant parasol – the faculty floor is supported by slender tapered steel columns, the design of which speaks to both the lightness as well as the technical virtuosity of our time.

The distribution of programs throughout the project is organized by building “volumes.” To the west, a brick and glass volume contains two computer labs and the café on the ground floor, offering views into the building from the mall and an intensity of activity directly fronting the interior public square.

Above it, overlooking the square, is the dean’s suite, including a board room with spectacular views up the mall to the Hurley Administration Building. To the south, a two-story volume made of

fossil-laden Texas limestone rises out of the landscape, containing the two large lecture halls stacked one atop the other. The top of the volume contains a garden terrace, accessed by a pair of meeting rooms.

To the north, and adjacent to the main entry and fronting Highland Avenue, a brick volume with traditionally proportioned but extra-large windows contains the Professional Leadership Program spaces, a securities trading floor, advising spaces and small classrooms on the first floor; graduate advising, department chairs and the Information and Learning Technology Center on the second floor; and classrooms on the lower level.

To the east of the square is a large interior volume of Texas limestone and wood containing large classrooms on the lower level and first floor, and graduate and professional classrooms on the second floor. Completing the composition, a brick, zinc and glass volume wraps the southeast corner of the project and contains classrooms on the lower level; research centers on the first floor; and graduate classrooms and the Ph.D. program on the second floor. Small study rooms for group work are dispersed throughout the project, close to classrooms and lecture halls.

The spaces in between the building volumes act as pedestrian streets rather than corridors, providing opportunities for chance interaction as well as absorbing the numbers of users coming and going from the classroom spaces. Small seating areas are scattered throughout, encouraging students, faculty, administrators and professionals to stop for a break; fostering further interaction; and reinforcing the idea of the project as a destination.

The sloped site and the city-like disposition of buildings create the opportunity for multiple entries to the project, all of which follow large public “streets” towards the central square. Although each group of users has its own entry, with undergraduates entering primarily from the west at the mall level, and graduate students and professionals entering primarily from the east, the potential for interaction on the way to the square is increased. The entry to the west, adjacent to the mall and Highland Avenue, is protected from the harsh sun and rain by the overhang of the faculty floor. Taking advantage of the opportunity to cut holes in the faculty terrace to allow filtered light into the atrium square, the entry borrows some of this natural light to welcome people to the building. To the east, a grand Texas limestone staircase rises from a new campus green space, engaging the complex at mid-level and inviting visitors into the atrium square.

The university, the college and the design team are all committed to achieving the highest possible LEED rating for both the building and the landscape. Through innovative sun-control and light-control strategies, the use of sustainable and local materials and highly efficient building systems, the project will set the standard for sustainable design for the campus. The placement of the new project affects the smallest number of existing trees, and many new trees will be added. Use of grass will be limited to specific formal garden areas, while native plants that do not require heavy maintenance and watering will help create a more natural and sustainable landscape to the south of the building.

It is the goal of this project to embody in the architecture and landscape the principals and mission of the college and, in the process, to set the standard for future buildings on the UNT campus and throughout the world.

Building GoalsEnhance learning

Provide learning spaces for academic programs at each degree level, including undergraduate classrooms of all sizes, quality MBA classrooms that may also serve as executive education classrooms and seminar rooms dedicated to doctoral education.

Ensure access of all students and faculty to state-of-the-art learning technology and business information systems in classrooms, labs, group study rooms and offices.

Ensure design flexibility needed to accommodate future changes in program focus, pedagogy and instructional technology.

Provide technological outreach opportunities including video conferencing, global networking and on- demand video.

“It never was, and it will never be,‘ business as usual’ at UNT. Our new Business Leadership Building will be a perfect symbol of the creative thinking, entrepreneurial spirit and dynamic energy that make a UNT education such a valuable asset.

Whenever I recruit other UNT graduates for my company I’m confident that I’m getting the best. I know they will have the skills required not just to meet, but exceed, my expectations as well as the expectations of our clients.

The Department of Accounting in UNT’s College of Business laid the foundation for my success today. It was a rigorous program that helped me discover a professional path that has brought me great personal satisfaction and financial opportunity.”

G. Brint Ryan (B.S., M.S. ’88), CPAFounder, CEO and Managing Principal, RyanMember, Board of Regents, UNT System

Building GoalsBuild community

Encourage students to remain in the building and interact with others by creating a variety of interior and exterior spaces such as a café, outdoor terraces, tutor rooms, team study rooms, a general access lab and an atrium with furniture appropriate for laptop use.

Provide appropriate spaces for student support services and student organizations.

Provide spaces, including a faculty lounge, where faculty can gather for conversation and collaboration.

Provide spaces for faculty and students to meet for learning enhancement.

Locate departmental chairs in a common area, giving each department its separate identity, but providing shared resources.

Provide a board room that may be used for various college boards as well as for external boards.

Be the location of choice for events that connect students and faculty with business practitioners.

Accommodate selected events of campuswide and community interest and importance. “From its distinctive architecture to its innovative classrooms, UNT’s new Business Leadership

Building will change the face of our campus.”

O. Finley Graves, Dean College of BusinessUniversity of North Texas

Building Goals

Provide a collegewide faculty floor that dispenses with segregation by discipline and centralizes faculty support services.

Provide a collegial environment committed to research with quiet, efficient offices filled with natural light.

Provide space appropriately located and designed for research centers and other outreach functions that routinely interact with the business community.

Make the center spaces flexible by providing shared resources, but give each center an identity.

“As a proud graduate of UNT’s College of Business, I’m excited about the future of the university. The Business Leadership Building will not only provide a world-class learning environment for our students, but will also show the world that our possibilities are endless.” Laura Wright (B.S.A., M.S.A ’82), CPASenior Vice President and CFO, Southwest Airlines

Promote research and interdisciplinarity

Building Goals

Design an iconic building that will serve as a key element of the identity of the college and its academic programs.

Design a contemporary, professional building that clearly communicates it is a college of business.

Design a building that will distinguish UNT from surrounding competitors as a comprehensive college of business and a destination for an executive education.

Design a building that will serve as a competitive tool in attracting and retaining prospective students and star faculty.

Design a building that is LEED-certified and environmentally friendly.

“UNT’s College of Business is known for the quality of its graduates whose knowledge and experience help industry thrive. The new Business Leadership Building continues UNT’s tradition of academic excellence while providing the best possible environment for business education today for students and executives. The building’s design also is further evidence of the innovation that is gaining national attention for UNT as a university to watch.” Gretchen M. Bataille, PresidentUniversity of North Texas

Brand the college as a leader in business education

Help Us Build Today for Business Tomorrow

The Business Leadership BuildingAmbitious endeavors succeed when people with a shared vision join together. To best prepare students today for business leadership tomorrow, UNT’s College of Business has envisioned a facility that supports the most effective teaching and learning possible. We need your help to realize that vision.

Supporting the visionYour investment in the Business Leadership Building will impact the global business community for generations to come by sculpting young minds to lead the business world of tomorrow. Great ideas will develop powerfully in a facility designed to stimulate interaction, team work and collaboration, allowing breakthroughs in research by faculty and real-world experiences for students. Such an innovative learning community will attract the best and brightest students, and will allow UNT to be a catalyst for growth and change in business leadership.

Your gift will make the differenceFor the future of students today and long into the future we ask for your philanthropic support. Join us in building today for business tomorrow.

Contact Information

University of North TexasCollege of Business

O. Finley Graves, Dean

1155 Union Circle #311160Denton, TX 76203-5017940.565.3076

www.cob.unt.edu

To pledge your support today, contact David Broughton, Development Officer, at 940-891-6855 or david.broughton@unt.edu.

Business Leadership Building Design and Construction Schedule

Programming/Site Investigation June 2008 – February 2009

Program Redefinement and Concept Development October 2008 – March 2009

Schematic Design January 2009 – June 2009

Schematic Design Drawings June 2009

Design Development June 2009 – October 2009

Cost Estimate September 2009 – October 2009

Construction Documents July 2009 – February 2010

Demolition of Kendall Hall September 2009 – December 2009

Groundbreaking December 2009

Construction December 2009 – June 2011

Construction Complete/Occupancy July 2011

Invest in the Future of Business

Business Leadership Building Naming Opportunities

Atrium — $1,500,000

Café Terrace — $200,000

Classrooms (varying sizes) — $100,000 – $200,000

Computer Labs — $300,000

Dean’s Suite — $300,000

Executive Board Room — $500,000

Executive Education Classrooms — $250,000 – 300,000

Graduate Suite (Terrace, Lounge and Seminar Rooms) — $500,000

Lecture Halls — $300,000

Rooftop Garden Terrace — $1,200,000

Trading Room — $500,000

Other naming opportunities are available.

PS A008039J-10/09

To pledge your support today, contact David Broughton, Development Officer, at 940-891-6855 or david.broughton@unt.edu.

University of North Texas • College of Business • 1155 Union Circle #311160 • Denton, TX 76203-5017 • 940.565.3076

PS A008039J-10/09