2024-05-12T22:00:00-04:00 https://archinect.com/news/article/150418870/cannondesign-completes-new-western-michigan-university-student-center-inspired-by-indigenous-design-elements Niall Patrick Walsh 2024-03-04T12:13:00-05:00 >2024-03-15T01:45:58-04:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/45/45baf8f34c11676cd8d89ff4bd66ace1.jpg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=1200" border="0" /><p><a href="https://archinect.com/firms/cover/106349/cannondesign" target="_blank">CannonDesign</a> has completed a new student center at <a href="https://archinect.com/schools/cover/18686799/western-michigan-university" target="_blank">Western Michigan University</a> in Kalamazoo. Replacing the university&rsquo;s Bernhard Center, the new three-level building contains gathering and lounge spaces, dining, a bookstore, a future on-campus brewpub, and retail, designed as a &ldquo;beacon of inclusion,&rdquo; according to the team.</p> <figure><p><a href="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/5a/5aedcc2c694ab6298f79fd8b924404ca.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=1028" target="_blank"><img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/5a/5aedcc2c694ab6298f79fd8b924404ca.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=514"></a></p><figcaption>Photo credit: Christopher Barrett</figcaption></figure><figure><figure><a href="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/5f/5f96b86b0af1132eda2bc666565fec60.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=1028" target="_blank"><img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/5f/5f96b86b0af1132eda2bc666565fec60.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=514"></a><figcaption>Photo credit: Christopher Barrett</figcaption></figure></figure><p>&ldquo;Located on lands historically occupied by Ojibwe, Odawa, and Bodewadmi nations, the building is designed to be a student-centered gathering place that champions belonging and honors the roots of Native American heritage embedded throughout the site,&rdquo; the team notes.</p> <figure><p><a href="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/25/2530de35cdff99fb4661dc45c9a69aa5.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=1028" target="_blank"><img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/25/2530de35cdff99fb4661dc45c9a69aa5.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=514"></a></p><figcaption>Photo credit: Laura Peters</figcaption></figure><figure><figure><a href="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/85/858842f36138ce8c6910c4478ab9243d.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=1028" target="_blank"><img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/85/858842f36138ce8c6910c4478ab9243d.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=514"></a><figcaption>Photo credit: Laura Peters</figcaption></figure></figure><p>The building&rsquo;s 163,000-square-foot plan was designed to create &ldquo;interstitial opportunities&rdquo; for students to informally engage with each other. Student feedback influenced the design of various social elements, such as a sitting circle derived from Native American culture. Across the sc...</p>