To fulfill its ongoing mission, St. Albans set out to both consolidate and expand its educational space. In response, SOM created a new extension at the heart of the picturesque campus, whose landscape was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. The project seamlessly connected disparate internal floors and external public spaces while achieving a number of other important goals.

The building is an interactive environment that contains classrooms, faculty offices, and informal social spaces. Four processional pathways link upper and lower levels and create a continuous circulation system. Seating areas and a cafe are located along the paths to encourage informal interactions and to extend the learning experience beyond the classroom walls. The new building also creates better physical and visual relationships to the school’s historic Washington National Cathedral and enhances views to central Washington, D.C.