CASE STUDY 3

Missouri State University Ozark Education Center /

BNIM

 Architects: BNIM
 Area: 4310 ft²
 Year: 2020

 Immersed in the landscape of the Ozark Mountains, the Missouri State University
Ozarks Education Center is designed to serve as a gateway for learning and
observation of the surrounding state conservation areas and ecological resources. The
community facility, at 4,310 sf, provides one central location to accommodate larger
groups of students and researchers to take part in ecology research and education
through a unique experiential lens. The MSU Ozarks Education Center reflects the
natural elements of the surrounding topography and was guided by the concept of
designing with a light touch, both physically and sustainably on the natural environment.
.Site plan
The MSU Ozarks Education Center provides sleeping quarters, a dining center,
residential kitchen, classroom space, and room for programs to help support the pursuit
of education and research for MSU faculty and students, other universities, high school
students, and non-profit organizations. A focal point of connection is the facility’s dogtrot
which serves as a point of entry for the main building and a threshold for visitors to
begin a day of ecological study at the MSU Ozarks Education Center.

The dogtrot divides the main building into community space and residential space.
Designed on an east/west orientation to accommodate the site, the main building
connects visitors to the natural environment by way of the dogtrot, opening up the heart
of the facility to views of sunrise and sunset. A roof oculus located within the dogtrot
space also orients visitors to the surrounding site, creating connections to both sky and
earth, and allowing water to come into space.
 © Kelly Callewaert
The dogtrot is equipped with large barn doors for passive cooling that can be closed
down as needed to protect against harsh weather conditions. Three individual cabins
are located down the site’s slope from the main building. Nestled into the trees, these
cabins also focus on the multi-sensory experience of natural elements, such as light, air,
and water. Large apertures of glass offer immersive views of the surrounding forest and
passive cooling strategies are implemented through operable windows.