Wayne State University, Wilson State Hall

Dating back to the 1940s, State Hall was the first purpose-built academic building for Wayne State University, a modernist L-shaped structure lined with classrooms and lecture halls. It has remained integral to the university ever since: Nearly every student from the university attends at least one class here. While recognizing State Hall’s significance, the university also recognized its traditional classroom format no longer supports modern teaching and learning pedagogy, nor the evolving needs of its diverse student population.  

The newly renamed Wilson State Hall has been transformed to be an active, immersive gathering place for learning and collaboration. Not only does it respond to the needs and interests of today’s students and their various learning styles, the project addresses much-needed maintenance and infrastructure upgrades while also retaining the historical essence of a building that is so integral to the Wayne State campus and Midtown Detroit.  

This was a strategic renovation, a comprehensive reconsider of interior learning environments throughout and a tailored approach to the exterior that sought to preserve and respect those attributes meaningful to its era while also being evocative of our times. The Bauhaus-influenced original design deployed an incredible rigor in both plan and façade composition, a characteristic that continues to read through in the transformation, an expression of module, layers and depth now dramatically more performance-focused, targeting 33% energy savings and LEED Gold through a number of measures: enhanced insulation throughout, including at new roofing systems and existing brick envelope, outdated glazing systems replaced with high-performance curtainwall, a patterned frit applied generously to address heat gain and reduce bird strikes, new shaped brise soleil along the east façade protecting classrooms from morning glare, advanced air-handling systems, occupancy-based ventilation, LED lighting and daylight harvesting. The materials and attention to craft seek to unify and uplift, add warmth to the “beautiful machine,” curate a response to the current state of campus—especially the importance and activity along storied Cass Avenue—and work in concert with the adjacent Yamasaki building to project a timeless and balanced face to the community. 

Inside, the design retains the double-loaded corridor concept of the original building but replaces the lineup of 71 nearly identical classrooms with an ecosystem of flexible room styles supporting a variety of pedagogies. Now students and faculty can learn and teach in spaces they find most suitable, with equitable access to active learning areas, seminar rooms, auditoriums, learning lounges, collaboration zones and more, along with equally adaptable furnishings.

More than 50 original art works are displayed throughout, many from underrepresented Cass Corridor artists and Wayne State alumni. The building exudes a sense of belonging with spaces that respond to student needs, including prayer rooms, health and personal rooms, showers, and meeting rooms for student groups. These transformations to Wilson State Hall have given this foundational building new life that modernizes the teaching environments and bolsters the student experience for Wayne State University.