Virginia Tech Breaks Ground on New Campus

  • By Matt Jones
  • 09/15/21

With a celebratory groundbreaking ceremony, construction has officially begun on the Virginia Tech Innovation Campus in Alexandria, Va. University, government and business leaders gathered on Tuesday, Sept. 14, to mark the first steps of the first academic building of the new campus. The new facility is scheduled to open its doors to students, faculty and staff in fall 2024.

“It’s a day many years in the making, made possible by a broad group of partners who were willing to support a bold vision to advance research, graduate education and community engagement in the greater Washington, D.C., metro area,” said Virginia Tech President Tim Sands to a crowd of more than 200.

According to university news sources, the Innovation Campus will offer graduate-level programs in computer engineering and computer science, as well as project-based initiatives that will partner students with local industry leaders. Boeing announced in May of this year that it was investing $50 million in the new campus as its first foundational partner. The funds will help create scholarships and recruit faculty and researchers.

“Our vision for the Innovation Campus is to be both a place and a culture that unlocks the power of diverse people and ideas to solve the world’s most pressing problems through technology,” said Lance Collins, vice president and executive director of the Innovation Campus. “Diversity isn’t just a core value to me. It is a measure of excellence that will ensure the Innovation Campus delivers on its full potential.”

The new academic building will stand 11 stories and measure in at 300,000 square feet, and according to university news, its design draws on principles of sustainability, health and wellness, green and social spaces, accessibility, connectivity, flexibility and integrated technology. The campus itself will cover 3.5 acres and is being developed in North Potomac Yard, near a future Potomac Yard Metrorail Station.

The long-term plan for the Innovation Campus includes the construction of two other buildings, each about 150,000 square feet, as campus grows. The university partnered with Sasaki to create a master plan for the campus and with SmithGroup to design the new academic building. Construction is being handled by JBG Smith.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • University of Kansas Opens $400M Football Stadium Reconstruction

    The University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kan., recently announced that the $400-million reconstruction of David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium is complete in time for the 2025 football season, according to a news release. The university partnered with Turner Construction Company on the project.

  • California Boarding School Opens New Inquiry Collaborative Facility

    Cate School, a boarding school in Carpinteria, Calif., for students grades 9–12, recently announced that it has finished renovating a historic dining hall into a new academic hub, according to a news release. The school partnered with Blackbird Architects and Tangram Interiors on the two-story, 16,000-square-foot Inquiry Collaborative.

  • How One School Reimagined Learning Spaces—and What Others Can Learn

    When Collegedale Academy, a PreK–8 school outside Chattanooga, Tenn., needed a new elementary building, we faced the choice that many school leaders eventually confront: repair an aging facility or reimagine what learning spaces could be. Our historic elementary school held decades of memories for families, including some who had once walked its halls as children themselves. But years of wear and the need for costly repairs made it clear that investing in the old building would only patch the problems rather than solve them.

  • Longwood University Selects Builder for $73M Performing Arts Center

    Longwood University in Farmville, Va., recently announced that it has selected Swedish construction company Skanska as the builder of its new performing arts center, according to online news. The project involves the demolition of the current building and constructing a new, 64,500-square-foot facility.