Southwest Education Center
Distinguished Building Award Submission
The site, half a mile north of Interstate 80, is surrounded by a pristine prairie landscape, and a commercial strip development of ersatz simulacra to the north.
The community college satellite facility flanks the street to its north. The elongated, two-level mass fits the prairie scale and generates the dignity befitting a regional institution.
Having parking on the south side, the building steps down to one story for the entrance, conference center, and community spaces. Louvers, light shelves, and the slender east-west spine bring daylight and outdoor views to 95% of interiors, while providing warmth and natural light in this northern climate.
Employing the main campus’s three primary masonry tones, a decorative brick pattern attains the scale of the region, resonates with the colorful and playful qualities of the commercial strip, and presents a strong wall to extreme weather from the north.
The center is pursuing LEED Platinum certification.
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Main entrance lobby, reception desk and a sustainable teaching wall; Photo: Jeremy Cordell
- Architect
- Legat Architects, Inc.
- Associate Architect
- Brubaker (Design Consultant)
- Client
- Moraine Valley Community College
- Consultants
- David R. McCallum Associates, Inc.
- KJWW Engineering Consultants
- Larson Engineering
- Metro Design Associates, Inc.
- General contractor
- IHC Construction Companies, LLC
- Location
- Tinley Park, Illinois
- Category
- Institutional
