York University School of Continuing Studies Building Wins Prestigious Architecture Award

This blog was provided by the York University School of Continuing Studies

Congratulations to Perkins & Will on recently winning an Architecture and Interiors award from Architect Magazine for their work on the School of Continuing Studies building located at York University’s Keele Campus.

Architect Magazine is the premier site for architecture industry news & building resources for architects and architecture industry professionals worldwide. Architect’s third annual Architecture & Interiors Awards honours outstanding commercial architecture and interior design submitted by firms from around the world.

Since opening its doors to students in late 2022, the School of Continuing Studies building has earned several prestigious architectural awards, nominations, and accolades. In addition to this most recent award, Perkins & Will received an AIA Canada Award for excellence in interior architecture and was listed as an honouree in the 2023 Best of the Year Awards by Interior Design Magazine in the category of higher education — another globally prestigious award.

In August 2023, Perkins & Will won an ARIDO (Association of Registered Interior Designers of Ontario) award for the School of Continuing Studies building in the Learn category. Running for over 40 years, the ARIDO awards are the industry’s premier design awards in Ontario. 

Perkins & Will was selected to design the School of Continuing Studies building in 2018 with lead architects Safdar Abidi and Andrew Frontini. The twisted design of the building symbolizes the School’s twist on the traditional mission of continuing studies to solve Canada’s most pressing labour market gaps by connecting employers with a highly-skilled, ambitious talent pool of students.

The six-story, 120,000-square-foot, 50-classroom building also serves as an example of how a post-pandemic learning space can blend in-person and virtual learning formats using the latest technology to support the needs of students.

The building is designed with the principles of diversity, equity, inclusion, and sustainability and includes notable interior features such as a lactation room for nursing mothers, a prayer and meditation room, automated doors, standing desks in all classrooms, and large hallway spaces for those requiring wheelchair access. 

Congratulations again to Perkins & Will on their well-deserved recognition for creating the school’s new home.