Soka University Life Sciences Building and Residence Halls

HOK worked with Soka University to bring three state-of-the-art new buildings to this growing campus in the coastal hills of Southern California.

Located along the school’s central lawn, the Marie & Pierre Currie Hall hosts teaching and research labs, classrooms, a lecture hall and faculty offices that support the life sciences program.

HOK’s lab planners organized the building’s instructional modules into chemistry and biology research neighborhoods. These neighborhoods allow for hands-on, interactive teaching and provide flexibility for a range of activities. Core lab facilities, including an aquatics lab, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), accommodate advanced research and help recruit new faculty.

A collaboration spine with meeting rooms, open study areas, communication stairs and exhibit space fosters interdisciplinary interaction and sharing. Floor-to-ceiling windows place the program’s science on display while connecting students and faculty to the broader campus. Dichroic glass fins along the facade create ever-changing prisms of light that energize interior spaces and bring to life the exterior.

HOK also designed two new residence halls to accommodate Soka’s increasing enrollment. The twin, four-story buildings anchor the university’s southwest border. Each hall contains 50 housing units (made up of single- and double-bedroom dormitories), meeting and social spaces, a kitchen and 24-hour study rooms. A covered walkway connects the buildings.

Designed to complement the architectural language of the campus, the residence halls feature a warm travertine facade and generous windows and curtain walls that harvest daylight and offer sweeping views onto the student lawn and surrounding hills.

All three new Soka buildings are targeting LEED Gold certification for sustainability.