No longer a hole in the ground surrounded by construction tape, the Friend Center for Engineering Education is finally open for University business.
Named for donor Dennis Keller '63's high school friend and Princeton roommate Peter Friend '63, who died their junior year, the center is intended to be a facility that will bridge the gap between engineering and the liberal arts.
From the open lobby to the facade made up almost entirely of windows, every detail of the Friend Center is meant to project an inviting air. In the words of Dean of the School of Engineering James Wei, the Friend Center is meant to be "welcoming arms from the engineering school to the rest of campus."
With brand-new facilities and an array of amenities, the Friend Center seems well-equipped to meet Wei's expectations. In addition to state-of-the-art classrooms and clusters, there is the new home of the engineering library, a 250-seat lecture hall and a small cafe.
Henry Cobb, the architect of the Friend Center, has many other acclaimed avant-garde projects under his belt. Pei, Cobb and Freed — the firm that designed the Friend Center — also designed the John F. Kenney Presidential Library in Boston and the glass pyramid addition to the Louvre, in Paris and the University's own Spelman dormitories.
Wei said he is thrilled with the results of a project for which he has worked very hard. "It's one of my favorite subjects. It looks absolutely marvelous," he said.
Wei also stressed that the center is dedicated to the education of University undergraduates, which he said is unusual for a building that is so extensively equipped with the latest technology.
According to representative for OIT student services Leila Shahbender, the computer facilities in Friend offer a taste of the future of multimedia education. There are three classrooms in which every desk is equipped with its very own laptop for the students' use during class.
The unprecedented presence of laptops enables professors to integrate technology into the classroom experience in ways previously unimagined. The rooms are also available as computer clusters when not in use.
In addition to these technologically enhanced classrooms, there are two full-time computer clusters equipped with Sunblade 100s and SGI workstations. Along with the other three classrooms under OIT's jurisdiction, these clusters are outfitted with media modules, for the use of DVDs, videos and CDs.
In addition, there are ethernet jacks for laptops, projectors, DVD and video players.
"It's the most fully wired place on campus," Wei said.
Al Brown '05, who has his freshman seminar in one of these multimedia-equipped classrooms, experienced these technological additions first hand.
"It's really helpful because my class is interactive," he said, adding that the quality of the equipment enhances the experience of viewing classics in dance, opera and other forms of art. However, the room is so new that the blinds haven't arrived yet, which he admitted was a little distracting when watching a video.
Although the paint is still wet, the Friend Center is already in use. As Brown quipped, "It's certainly been a 'friend' to my class."
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