Gensler completed West Coast University Campus with careful thought to the student experience in Richardson, Texas.

West Coast University (WCU) relocated their existing Dallas campus to nearby Richardson for its healthy, friendly atmosphere and to provide students with a safe campus. WCU and Gensler partnered to transform a three-story commercial office building into an activated learning ecosystem that provides a connected campus experience that fosters students to flourish. Because WCU aims to cultivate their students’ education by empowering them to spend more time on campus, the design team purposefully crafted an amenity-rich campus blended with a sense of wonder and discovery.

WCU offers a condensed, high-intensity nursing program, with a teaching method that accelerates students into the workforce. Their values center upon student interests and success as it is reflected in the design of the campus.

Gensler was challenged to infuse an academic, educational presence within an office building with an expansive parking lot. Therefore, the design team introduced a landscaped entrance plaza that forms a unified and energized campus. The design team also incorporated a three-story atrium at the main entrance and installed a signature interconnected stair to encourage visibility, collaboration space, curiosity, healthy movement, and social collision.

The first floor focuses on the student tour experience as it begins with a bright, open reception and admission space and ends with career services to symbolize the complete journey at WCU-Texas in Richardson. A custom EKG wave on the reception desk, a natural material palette with anti-bacterial copper-like metals and Texas limestone, and a striking three-story green wall enhance the bright, biophilic atmosphere and reinforce the scientific values and health and wellness focus of the school.

Design: Gensler
Photography: Ryan Gobuty