Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Virginia to Get State’s First Net Zero Higher Ed Building

  • By Matt Jones
  • 06/09/21

On the campus of Piedmont Virginia Community College in Charlottesville, Virginia, construction of the Advanced Technical Training Center is scheduled for completion in spring 2023. The center will be the first higher education facility in the state—and one of just a few community college buildings across the U.S.—to achieve net zero energy. The building was designed by VMDO Architects, and its budget is approximately $21 million.

The Advanced Technical Training Center will serve as the home for the college’s workforce training and career development programs. It will feature amenities like cybersecurity and forensics labs, advanced manufacturing and robotics labs, and active learning classrooms. It will also house the college’s admissions, advising, and career services offices, as well as a café, open spaces for group work, a multipurpose event room, and a veterans’ resource center.

“The PVCC faculty, staff and students are committed to a clean energy future for Virginia,” said PVCC President Frank Friedman. “We are so pleased to be leading the way by constructing this net zero energy building, which will become the centerpiece of our beautiful campus.”

According to a press release, VMDO’s résumé of net zero energy buildings includes the world’s first LEED Zero school (Discovery Elementary School), what is considered to be the largest net zero building in the country (Alice West Fleet Elementary School), and what is considered to be the first net zero energy community gathering place in Washington, D.C. (Stead Park Recreation Center). Construction of the Advanced Technical Training Center is expected to help the state of Virginia achieve 100% clean energy by 2050.

“In their focus on student success, community colleges are innovative training grounds and important contributors to local and regional economies,” said Joe Atkins with VMDO Architects. “It’s so rewarding to see PVCC explore net zero energy as a learning opportunity that will prepare students for future workforce and career opportunities.”

About the Author

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

Featured

  • Phoenix School District Breaks Ground on New Prep Academy

    The Creighton Elementary School District near Phoenix, Ariz., recently broke ground on a campus replacement for Biltmore Preparatory Academy, according to a news release. The new space will allow the school to expand its enrollment by 50 percent for K–8 students and accommodate modern, collaborative learning styles.

  • University of Oklahoma Announces New Campus Master Plan

    The University of Oklahoma in Norman, Okla., recently announced that it will soon launch a new, comprehensive Campus Master Plan to guide the campus’ physical development during the next decade, according to a news release.

  • Full Sail University Announces First Student Housing Facility

    Full Sail University in Winter Park, Fla., recently announced that development has begun on its first student housing community, according to a news release. The university is partnering with Nvision Development for construction and long-term management of the facility, which will stand five stories and have the capacity for more than 570 beds.

  • Doerr School of Sustainability Accelerator

    From Concrete Warehouse to Innovation Hub: Accelerating Sustainability at Stanford

    The transformation of a once windowless, concrete publishing warehouse into a sun-drenched center for global innovation began with a single, fundamental challenge: how to turn an industrial storage shell into a space built for human connection.