Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Kansas State University: Foundation Business & Research Park

  • 10/01/18
Kansas State University

PHOTOS COURTESY OF HOEFER WYSOCKI

The Kansas State University (K-State) Foundation is responsible for donor-centered acquisition and stewardship of private gifts in support of the university and its philanthropic and academic endeavors. The new Foundation headquarters at K-State, clad in the campus vernacular of limestone and glass, provides an engaging and welcoming experience for the K-State community. The university’s hallmark purple is used to illuminate the exterior balcony, enhancing the Foundation’s visibility and promoting team spirit. In addition to K-State Foundation staff, the new business park will be home to entrepreneurs, startups, and established companies who will work alongside K-State faculty and students.

While the first phase of the 240,000-square-foot, four-phase project focused mainly on creating new headquarters for the Foundation, the vision of the overall project is to establish a business-park-like setting to bridge K-State’s academic programs with the university’s business partners. The Business & Research Park creates an opportunity for employers to guide the university’s academic focus to prepare the next-generation workforce.

K-State was selected as the site of a new 500,000-square-foot, $1.25 billion National Bio and Agro-defense Facility (NBAF). The NBAF is currently under construction on a site adjacent to the K-State Foundation Business & Research Park. This strategic location plays a crucial role in connecting the university’s veterinary, agricultural, and biosecurity research and expertise with the NBAF and related industries.

Additionally, the Business & Research Park is a keystone of K-State’s North Corridor Master Plan, which envisions positioning Manhattan, KS, as the national center of excellence for the bio and agro-defense industry.

Hoefer Wysocki has completed the phase 1 and 2 of the design; phase 3 and 4 are in progress. When completed, the project will mark a major milestone of the Foundation’s grand vision to create an innovation and research park that connects the academic campus to the regional and national business community and its next-generation workforce.

This article originally appeared in the College Planning & Management October 2018 issue of Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • Utah Valley University Opens New Engineering Building

    Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, recently held a grand-opening ceremony for the new Scott M. Smith Engineering Building, according to a news release. The facility is one of the largest engineering buildings in the state at almost 200,000 square feet, and it plays home to the university’s Smith College of Engineering and Technology (SCET).

  • UNT Dallas Holds Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony for $100M STEM Building

    The University of North Texas at Dallas in Dallas, Texas, recently celebrated the opening of its new, $100-million STEM Building, according to local news. The ceremony on Dec. 2 preceded the first day of classes in the facility on Jan. 12, 2026.

  • Countway Library at Harvard Medical School

    From Shadows to Sanctuary: The Transformation of Light at Countway Library

    The renovation of Countway Library at Harvard Medical School demonstrates how biophilic design and advanced lighting strategies transformed a formerly dark, insular space into a vibrant, welcoming hub that supports wellness, learning, and community engagement.

  • Spaces4Learning Trends & Predictions for Educational Facilities in 2026: Part II

    As education leaders look toward 2026, the design of K–12 and higher education facilities is being reshaped by powerful, converging forces. Survey respondents point to the rapid growth of Career and Technical Education, deeper alignment with workforce and industry needs, and the accelerating influence of AI and emerging technologies.

Digital Edition