UC to celebrate grand opening of Clifton Court Hall

At 185,000 square feet, the $93 million hall will serve three colleges including UC’s biggest, the College of Arts and Sciences. The College of Engineering and Applied Science and the College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services also teach classes there.

A new pedestrian bridge links Clifton Court to another A&S landmark, the stately Arts & Sciences Hall and the Bearcat Commons.

“Because of the size and growth of the college, Arts and Sciences has been distributed across many buildings over the past decade,” said Jamie Accurso, director of planning at UC. “So Clifton Court gives each of these departments a center of gravity and front door. So if you are in psychology, you know where to go to find help with your programs.”

UC College of Arts and Sciences Dean James Mack said the building makes a good first impression to visitors.

“The first thing you notice is the elegance — the grand staircase in the atrium as you walk in,” he said.

Students have quickly taken to the building’s many shared spaces, including its lounge where they can meet, socialize or study together.

“The building is designed to be a collaborative, interdisciplinary space for people to share in a spontaneous way,” Mack said.

Mack said he is looking forward to other improvements slated for UC’s Uptown campus, including the current renovation of Old Chem and the eventual replacement of Crosley Tower.

The Arts and Sciences departments served include journalism; psychology; philosophy; Romance and Arabic languages and literatures; Asian, Eastern European and German Studies; the School of Public and International Affairs and the School of Communication, Film and Media Studies.

Clifton Court Hall features several innovative spaces, including state-of-the-art TV production and digital animation studios. And the largest room, a 150-seat auditorium, has microphones in the ceiling so students attending remotely can more easily hear questions posed by students to the lecturers.

The building was designed collaboratively by LMN Architects and KZF Design and built by Messer Construction Co.

MaryKate Genis, architect at KZF Design, said the exterior facade is a modern application of terra cotta designed to blend into the surrounding brick buildings. The interior features a five-story atrium and custom grand staircase and decorative panels that match the exterior design.

Classrooms and lecture halls were designed with functionality in mind. Instead of fixed auditorium desks, the large lecture hall allows students to adjust seating to work in small groups if desired. The technology-enhanced classrooms can be configured for traditional lectures or small-group instruction so study teams can collaborate more easily.

Like UC’s Carl H. Lindner College of Business, the hallways at Clifton Court feature work counters to give students a place to meet, talk or work between classes.

The atrium features a grand staircase with striking red “gates.” Large windows in the stairwells invite visitors to use the stairways instead of the elevators to improve pedestrian flow. These features enhance the accessibility around campus and connect the heart of west campus to Clifton Avenue.

“I couldn’t be more excited about its opening,” said Assistant Professor Mike Gasaway, interim director of UC’s Digital Media Collaborative.

Gasaway is an Emmy-nominated director and filmmaker who has worked extensively in digital animation. Students in his classes use the latest tools to create their own projects in game design, animation, short films, documentaries and more.

The Digital Media Collaborative lab at Clifton Court Hall will feature the latest technology for students to complete their capstone projects, he said.

“What I really like is for students who come into the lab to feel creative,” Gasaway said.

He is especially looking forward to using the new screening room to share the students’ hard work.

“I think students are going to love it,” he said.

Featured image at top: UC celebrates the first day of fall classes by posting a 50,000 sign outside Clifton Court Hall signifying UC's record-setting 2023 enrollment. Clifton Court Hall will host a grand opening 3 p.m. Sept. 19. Photo/Kelly Bennett/UC