Aspiration & Achievement
A meaningful place on campus that offers a radical welcome to science, innovation and excellence, social and collaborative growth, adaptability for the future, and an enhanced campus ecology and environment.
RECOGNITION
2026 Learning by Design, Honor Award
"The Johnson Science Building (JSB) has become a hive of activity for both science students and students across campus. JSB is one of those places that people are attracted to – both for its formal and especially informal spaces - to study and connect with others throughout the day and quarter. It’s not just inviting, it really is the 'radically welcoming' principle we envisioned to transform access to science education."
Matt Campbell
President, Pierce College
PROJECT DETAILS
The Johnson Science Building expands laboratory and teaching spaces on the Puyallup campus. Designed with a spirit of “radical welcoming,” the building centers student access and collaboration to create an inclusive entry into STEM education. It houses programs in chemistry, biology, earth and space science, and physics, as well as an ideation studio and fabrication lab.
The building is positioned to frame the eastern edge of the central quad, completing the master plan vision for the heart of the Puyallup campus. Its design establishes a clear relationship between the campus’s existing architectural language and its highly valued second-growth forest setting. With a compact three-story footprint, the design preserves the dense woodland ecology to the north, allowing it to function as a living laboratory and to support a new campus pathway.
Beyond physical access, the building creates visual connections between its three floors of laboratories and the vertical woodland ecology—from forest floor to upper canopy—just beyond the façade. The landscape design also introduces a prairie ecology along the south edge of the building to support key Pacific Northwest pollinator species, enhancing both academic study and ecological health.
Student collaboration is central to the building’s organization, with shared learning spaces surrounded by contemporary teaching labs and flexible, interdisciplinary classrooms. By prioritizing collaborative learning, the design fosters peer-to-peer engagement that extends beyond the lab to support innovation and expansive thinking. Interior spaces are infused with daylight, study resources, vibrant color, and strong visual connections to the natural environment, encouraging active engagement throughout. The building as a whole supports hands-on learning, extending beyond designated lab and study areas.
