Mars Center for Science and Technology

With its dynamic curves, green roofs, and outdoor gathering spaces, this LEED Gold design resolves the dynamic tension between the grid of the campus plan and the adjacent wetlands.

Zinc, aluminum, and glass play off the campus tradition of red brick to create a dramatic, 73,000-gross-square-foot facility whose Café Commons and study/social spaces make it a popular destination. Extensive glazing reveals the activity within the 14 teaching and 23 research laboratories that serve biology, chemistry, physics, astronomy, psychology, math, and computer science. The building also houses a greenhouse and vivarium.

Features:

Feature 1:
Daylighting analysis informed the design of a building brow that manages solar gain to reduce building load and save energy year round.
Feature 2:
An outdoor classroom puts science on display to actively engage students.
Feature 3:
The Mars Center is sited on the campus edge to connect the heart of the campus with wetlands to the south – a natural lab for the study of biology.

Science on Display

The three-story building design incorporates open space and extensive glass to reveal the activity and share the excitement of science with the campus, sparking interest in interdisciplinary collaborations, a focus on Wheaton’s “Connections” curriculum, and a commitment to sustainability.

Science Lab — The building is organized along a main street entirely of glass – one side completely open to every teaching laboratory, the other completely open to the previously neglected wetlands and woodlands to the southeast.

Study Nook — The commons space nestled between old and new, and the airy study spaces appearing to be tree houses, have drawn students to stay and study all hours of every day.

Dusk Exterior — With its dynamic curves, green roofs, and outdoor spaces, the design resolves the dynamic tension between the grid of the campus plan and the adjacent wetlands.

View of building entrance — The facility includes community spaces, such as study lounges and cafés, as well as cross-disciplinary laboratories.

interior stair — Students experience ‘intellectual collisions’, within the vertical connections of the building.

view of building and landscaped courtyard — This facility encourages student-faculty collaboration and interdisciplinary learning and research while exemplifying the College’s commitment to sustainability.

Facilitating STEAM Education

The design of the Mars Center supports Wheaton's approach to unifying the arts and sciences, moving from STEM to STEAM to educate whole-brain thinkers.

Designed to Perform

In addition to conserving resources and utility costs, the building's energy-efficient systems and sustainable features make the facility a teaching tool for sustainability.

Fostering Community

Connectivity of people and ideas was a guiding principle throughout the design process of the Mars Center. The facility provides a variety of inviting spaces that students and faculty can call their own, sparking serendipitous interactions that bring arts and sciences closer together to inspire intellectual inquiry.

Mars Center for Science and Technology exterior

October 13, 2013