Duke to Construct New Building to Advance Engineering Education and Research

Duke University will soon begin constructing a 150,000-square-foot building to house new education, research and entrepreneurship initiatives at the Pratt School of Engineering. Site preparation is already under way for construction to begin in March, with the building scheduled to open in late 2020.

The approximately $115-million facility will position Duke Engineering to achieve its vision for transforming the student experience and enhancing the sciences through interdisciplinary collaborations focused on health, computing and the environment, according to Ravi V. Bellamkonda, Vinik Dean of Engineering.

"This is a transformational project that will help catapult Duke Engineering to the next level of impact in education and research," said Bellamkonda. "We are grateful to Duke's Board of Trustees and senior leadership for supporting this investment in our future, and to our alumni and friends for their continued enthusiastic and generous support. We are excited about the opportunities this space will provide to help us achieve our 'outrageous ambitions' for collaborative research and innovation in graduate and undergraduate education, across engineering and the university as a whole."

The building, which is yet to be named, features three floors dedicated to interdisciplinary research "neighborhoods." Designed to promote collaboration, these spaces will intermingle faculty and students from different departments who work toward shared goals, including improving human health, advancing computing and intelligent systems, and paving the way toward a more sustainable future.

"This new engineering building represents an important step toward our goal of sustained excellence in technology and science," said Provost Sally Kornbluth. "It will give faculty and students in the Pratt School an opportunity to work with each other in innovative ways, to test their ideas, and to solve difficult problems, in the best tradition of Duke Engineering."

The building will also expand engineering student programming space by nearly 50 percent, with two floors for active-learning teaching and design spaces; specialized educational centers focused on entrepreneurship and energy, engineering and environment; and a Learning Commons dedicated to nurturing teaching excellence and the student experience.

"The new building design promotes active student learning," said George A. Truskey, senior associate dean of engineering, who led a team of faculty in programming the space with input from students. "The design labs are very open and flexible, allowing student teams to meet for brainstorming and then build and test their project designs. The open classrooms also will enable more active learning approaches, allowing students to discuss problems together in groups and then switch to a more traditional lecture orientation to present their results to their classmates."

By providing ample space for all students to participate in experiential, team-based projects, the facility will support Duke Engineering's vision for inspiring students to become creative problem-solvers through an innovative new curriculum focused on design, data science, computational thinking, research and entrepreneurship, Bellamkonda said.

The building site is located on Research Drive near the Fitzpatrick Center for Interdisciplinary Engineering, Medicine & Applied Sciences and next to Bostock Library.

Fundraising is under way toward the new facility, with naming opportunities available for key interior spaces as well as the building as a whole. For information, contact Jim Ruth, associate dean and director of development, at 919-660-5361 or james.ruth@duke.edu.