The Innovation and Design Education Building (IDE) at Southern New Hampshire University is a place for students to design, create, and mentor one another. IDE is a 67,000 SF building for STEM learning.

IDE reflects SNHU?s mission of making STEM education accessible with an elegant and bold structure. It houses four CDIO (Conceive, Design, Implement, Operate) hubs inspired by an educational framework where students work on projects from conception through operation. The hubs are paired with reconfigurable teaching labs, support labs, classrooms, collaboration spaces and offices. It is adaptable to allow for the curriculum?s evolution and provide students a range of spaces for learning.
© Anton Grassl
The exterior of the building re-interprets the region?s traditional architecture of barns and covered bridges. Designed as two barn volumes connected with a two-story lobby overlooking the Merrimack River and a new quadrangle, IDE is placed at the heart of the campus to invite students in and highlight the University?s commitment to STEM disciplines.
The use of traditional materials like slate, stone and copper in novel ways required the engagement of tradesmen to explore innovative technologies for cladding and roofing that achieved high-performance without compromise to aesthetics.
Site Plan
Exterior materials are brought inside and paired with wood and a fireplace to create a warm ?living room? that fosters collaboration. This space becomes key to promote a culture of equi...