Drury University Dormitory
Each design emphasized a specific concept congruent to the ideals of the school philosophy as defined by the individual student. The chosen concept for the project was community living through facility allocation. This included the sharing of bedrooms, restrooms, entry corridors and lounge spaces. Each allocation was dynamic to the room shared, allowing each student to potentially meet and share with every other student in the facility, if not by adjacency then by proxy. The purpose of facility allocation is to create an exchange of communication amongst each student at Drury University. Each resident shares a bathroom and an exterior terrace space along with the responsibilities that come with a higher level of autonomy. Each student’s sleeping chamber connects to a bathroom and exterior terrace, facilitating a dynamic neighborhood experience. Resident ‘X’ shares a bathroom with Resident ‘Y’, but the same Resident ‘X’ shares an exterior space with Resident ‘Z’. The entry is open to the interior corridor with a windowed doorway. This enables passing residents to view out into each terrace space, encouraging interaction between residents through the design solution. Each unit creates an internal community. These communities, based upon the population of each grade level, are connected externally to other housing units. Dialogue among these units is advocated, as well as dialogue between the external spaces generated by the structure. Through the internal and external connections, a grand sense of convergence is created. The collective housing units form a singular bond between students at Drury University allowing the educational portion of the collegiate career to develop strongly among the students at each grade level.