Gavilan Joint Community College District Gilroy, California
In its centennial year, the District embraced its mission to be diverse, purposeful, inclusive and equitable within the updated Master Plan for the Gilroy Campus and the design of a new Campus for its San Benito County location. The recommended Plans translate the academic and service needs of the community and retain a keen awareness of the history and heritage that is Gavilan College.
Location
Gilroy, California
Sector
Education
Service
Planning
Client
Gavilan Joint Community College District
Status
Completed
Size
150 Acres
137 Acres
The planning process was participatory, involving many individuals from the Gavilan College community. Here, students were asked to identify impactful experiences on campus, highlighting areas of focus for the campus planning. In a unique take, the design and planning team utilized concept photographs and ideas in community workshops to engage key public figures, students, faculty, staff, and community members in providing input and insights that were integrated into the final campus planning.
Existing, decentralized student and academic services across the hillside campus presented unintended obstacles to the desired seamless services to students and the community. In reinterpreting the current campus zoning, program locations, and aligning the campus with strategies that are defined in the California Guided Pathways Initiative, these services and resources are proposed within the new Library Student Resource Center (LSRC), greeting new students at the primary entrance to the college campus.
Programming and Criteria Documents were developed by Steinberg Hart. The collaborative process involved multiple programmatic areas across the college, including Counseling, Financial Aid, Admissions & Records, Transfer Center, EOPS, Veterans Center, the Accessible Education Center, CALWorks, Teaching & Learning Center, the Learning Commons (Skills Labs, Tutoring), Library and Library Services, Food Pantry, and proposed a new cafe and 100-person community and meeting room.
Inspired by the Guided Pathways Initiative and the College’s desired interconnectivity of programs and services, the College’s Project Task Force, Visioning Committee, and Steinberg Hart developed program and criteria documents for the new LSRC. In 2008, Steinberg Hart developed the Long Range Plan for Gavilan College’s new San Benito County Campus. In 2020, the vision became reality as Steinberg Hart led the long awaited first building(s) through programming and development of the Design-Build Criteria Documents.