New Student Services Building for the University of Miami
Although final plans are still being developed, a three-story, 30,000-square-foot facility on the campus of the University of Miami in Florida will be home to a new “one-stop” center for student-facing service departments, the Camner Center for Academic Resources and the Counseling Center. The current Counseling Center building will be demolished to make room for an improved entryway to the new Student Housing Village and Pavia Parking Garage.
The second floor of the building will house the Camner Center for Academic Resources, which will relocate from its present location. With its core focus on supporting students academically and working directly with faculty, the new space will allow for expanded and enhanced programming and will afford the center the opportunity to serve more students with a variety of customized academic services.
Designed for growth in both staff and programing, the third floor of the building will be reserved exclusively for the Counseling Center. In this new space, the center will be able to host workshops and group sessions, provide training to doctoral students through its American Psychosocial Association accredited training program, and offer other services.
The university has partnered with CIVICA Architecture to design the building, and the total project is estimated to cost $15 million. By including various technical and passive design elements aimed at addressing the climatic challenges of buildings in South Florida’s tropical environment, the project is expected to obtain LEED Silver certification.
Construction is expected to begin in May 2019.