UVA Northern Virginia

Fairfax, Virginia

Opening a New Chapter in NoVA

This educational co-working environment for the University of Virginia occupies two floors of the Inova Center Campus (the former Exxon Mobil headquarters in Fairfax, VA), creating a satellite hub for graduate classes, alumni events, and day trips for undergraduate programs. Our design team was challenged to translate UVA’s “Grounds” culture to a remote space where graduate students and faculty can collaborate in a microcosm of the iconic Charlottesville campus, all while creating a fresh identity representing Northern Virginia and the D.C. metropolitan area.

Client: The University of Virginia
Size: 55,000 square feet
Completion Date: 2025
Sustainability: Pending LEED Certification

UVA’s traditional blue and orange palette is translated through navy textiles, warm-hued natural woods, and bright orange accents.

A "WeWork" for the University

The Fairfax Campus is open for booking by all UVA students and faculty. Spanning two floors connected by a communicating stair, the facility offers over 40,000 square feet of learning, office, and event space. Designed with professional students in mind, the two floors provide a convenient and functional environment. Located just off the Capital Beltway and across from Inova Hospital, the facility is particularly desirable for nursing programs.

Preserved plants add biophilia in a central communicating stair connecting the two levels.

Level Two

Features classrooms for live and virtual teaching, lockers for commuting students and faculty, and seminar rooms for all-day workshops. A range of workspaces support different work postures, such as open seating areas to connect between classes, or phone booths for private calls.

Level Three

Contains offices for full-time faculty and visiting professors, focus rooms and touch-down workstations, and a board room for committee meetings. Open circulation spaces connect downstairs and have flexible furniture for events; a café provides healthy food options for staff and students.

What Makes It Cool

This marks UVA’s first substantial presence in the D.C. metro area, representing all 12 schools of the University.

Connections to nature are showcased by views of the forested buffer to the west, natural materials, and illuminated overhead planes that mimic ambient light.

Professional and Inclusive

Materials and finishes throughout the interior design seek a balance between the pastoral, Jeffersonian influences of the University’s past and the professional rigor of Northern Virginia and the National Mall.

The project team also sought to provide areas that support multiple levels of diverse populations. All-gender restrooms, mother’s rooms, wellness rooms, and a prayer room with an ablution sink are provided on both floors. Focus rooms are provided near the classrooms and throughout the flexible work zones with enhanced acoustic glazing to provide audio privacy.

Chevron-patterned acoustic tiles in focus rooms evoke a trademark “V” shape.

Wall paneling creates fractal motifs representing the different parts of the University that have come together to create this shared community.

The Fairfax campus will be staffed partly by professors and lecturers who leave Grounds on Friday to teach students on the weekends in Fairfax.

Twenty-four different products within the space were specified with Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), including insulation and interior finishes.

Project Team

Jon Penndorf

Carl Knutson

UVA Northern Virginia

Project Team

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