KUA HOWE DEWDNEY & WELCH DORMITORIES

Seeking to align its living spaces with the school’s commitment to equity, inclusion, and care for the environment, Kimball Union Academy aimed to provide more functional and comfortable living quarters for students and faculty, create more welcoming indoor and outdoor community gathering spaces, and improve the energy efficiency of two dormitories: Welch Hall and Kilton Hall (recently renamed Howe Dewdney Residence Hall). With state-of-the-art geothermal wells providing district heating, cooling, and hot water to the dorms and faculty residences, the new construction’s operations are completely fossil-fuel free. Featuring large community spaces where the whole dorm can gather, communal cooking spaces, and 50 cozy, light-filled rooms, the dorms offer a comfortable home away from home for KUA students. The center plaza between the buildings creates a mini-campus within the larger campus community. A campus project such as this offered myriad ways to engage students throughout the design process, and will be a catalyst for sustainability campus-wide as the school aims toward its net-zero goal.