North Carolina Central University envisions the new Collaborative Research & Learning Center as a gateway into the university and true beacon for innovation for its students. The new center will serve as a bridge for students living off campus, the CRLC will open 24 hours a day, seven days a week to offer students access to resources where their learning can soar. The Center includes “state of the art” technology empowering students to innovate, while also offering quiet spaces to study.

The new CRLC embraces seamless integration of indoor/outdoor environments. This blurring of indoor and outdoor space harkens back to the welcoming and inclusive front porches of the residences adjacent to the center. This reinterpreted porch is highlighted by a covered canopy which serves as additional usable space for the Center. The flexibility of this large outdoor space is an asset during this Covid-19 pandemic, providing covered spaces with plenty of fresh air and ample space for social distancing.

Prior to becoming the future home of the NCCU Collaborative Research & Learning Center, the site was home to two historic single-family homes which embodied the legacy and heritage of NCCU and the African American community of Durham, NC. The new 5,000SF CRLC is strategically sized not to dwarf the existing residences and transition to the larger scale of the university buildings. The porch depth and canopy height were thoughtfully sized to a relatable proportion to that of the single-family porches that line Fayetteville Street.

The building maximizes programmable space by allowing programmed space to also serve as building circulation. Collaborative spaces radiate around the central study lounge for easy wayfinding and sharing of creative energy. Ample dappled light to permeates the building through the perforated screened porch. The primary student lounge sprawls out to the porch to encourage the use of the outdoor porch as a learning and collaboration space.