Project Description
The 3.5-story glass, brick, and stone Rollins Campus Center at Young Harris College create a new hub of bustling activity while optimizing the surrounding mountain views and maximizing outdoor space with numerous porches and public spaces.
Young Harris College, a private, four-year liberal arts college located in the remarkable mountains of north Georgia, is expanding its building program with the goal of doubling its student body. The centerpiece of this new building program is the 125,000SF Rollins Campus Center – that features the Zell & Shirley Miller Library – designed to catapult the student experience at Young Harris College into the 21st century. Named for its donor, the O. Wayne Rollins Foundation, the Rollins Center is the signature facility and new social and intellectual heart of campus.
The Rollins Center connects four distinct areas in a single, state-of-the-art structure: a 60,000sf multi-purpose student center, an expanded dining hall boasting a wide variety of food stations, a 350-seat, versatile banquet facility, and a 40,000-square-foot modern library.
The combination of these program elements into one seamless whole creates a dynamic and vibrant center for campus life. An innovative approach to the design included a forward-looking library concept — one that serves as a new model for small-group, experiential, problem-based learning. Additional buildings will follow as part of a comprehensive master plan for the campus.
“Within a week of its opening, the Rollins Campus Center truly became what we anticipated — the social and intellectual heart of our campus! It is the first true 24-hour building we’ve ever had on campus, and it is a beehive of activity at all hours of the day and night. In these first months of operation, more than 150 special events per month have been held within it — and that’s not counting the daily activities of the dining hall, library, and office functions. It draws students in like a magnet — they love it and want to be there all the time!” – Cathy Cox, President of Young Harris College
Awards include:
– 2017 Facility Design Award of Excellence, Association of College Unions International
– 2015 Best Project Award, ENR Southeast
– 2015 Merit Award, AGC Build Georgia Awards Program
– 2015 First Place for Best Sustainable Practices, AGC Build Georgia Awards Program