The setting for the Merritt College Center for Science and Allied Health is stunning and demands an architectural solution that is equally as dramatic. The project is an instrumental element in the overall campus complex plan. The building shell design concept is an abstraction of the DNA evolution of humans that becomes an integral part of the building’s sunscreen system. Another scientific abstraction in the architecture of the facility is the curved helix-shaped exterior stairs. The learning environment is composed of Biology and Physical Science Laboratories, Allied Health, Mathematics, and Business Technology as well as a future Genomics teaching and production program. The overall planning concept celebrates open exchange, collaboration, active learning, as well as exhibition spaces.