The 78,000-s.f. Integrated Wellness Center at Winona State University is one of the first of its kind in the nation to truly integrate the six dimensions of wellness—intellectual, social, emotional, physical, occupational, and spiritual—in both the building’s program and its operations.
As a result, this center seamlessly integrates academic disciplines, student life and development departments, and athletic programs.
The building contains an indoor fitness track, cardiovascular fitness and strength-training facilities, gymnasiums, aerobics classrooms, a health services clinic, a counseling center, a health education and resource center, experiential learning labs and classrooms, and faculty and administrative offices.
The Integrated Wellness Center, designed to achieve LEED certification at the Gold level, transcends the wellness building typology by bringing health and the built environment into synergy. Numerous sustainable design strategies were employed to align the fitness and wellness goals of the University with contemporary building practices. The building stands as an organic body with a life of its own while simultaneously consuming less energy, reducing greenhouse gas, and breathing in concert with the occupants.