The new Mayo Clinic Integrated Education & Research Building (IERB) is inspired by the organization’s “three shields” of patient care: Cure, Connect, and Transform. The IERB facility merges these three shields for the first time on the institution’s Phoenix campus, setting a new standard for the future of healthcare education and discovery.
The building is a welcoming connector that both reflects and responds to its unique desert environs. Its three building elements — an education bar, laboratory bar, and connecting bridge — form a covered outdoor courtyard, creating an iconic shaded oasis. The courtyard provides respite from the desert sun and serves as a social heart for the campus, promoting spontaneous interactions and fostering a sense of community.
The IERB embodies Mayo Clinic’s culture and aspirations for creativity, collaboration, resource sharing, flexibility and integration by synergizing medical education and research into a single facility supporting the training of future physicians and Mayo’s leading biomedical research. The program includes flexible research laboratories, core facilities, vivarium, technology-enabled classrooms, experiential medical training, library functions, a campus event space, lounges, a café and administrative departments. By seamlessly combining medical education and research under one roof, the building enhances cross-disciplinary engagement and supports a holistic approach to training future physicians and advancing biomedical discovery. CO Architects served as the Design Architect in association with DFDG Architecture, Architect of Record.