The architecture and urban design firm Cooper Robertson has completed the C.H. “Chub” O’Reilly Enterprise Center, a new academic building on the growing campus of Drury University in Springfield, Missouri.
Designed by Cooper Robertson in collaboration with Trivers, the $27 million, 67,348-square-foot O’Reilly Enterprise Center includes new academic and related space for Drury’s business, international affairs, political science, mathematics and computer science programs.
Conceived as a campus hub, it also delivers high-tech student collaboration areas, facilities for guidance services, an executive conference center and social spaces with foodservice offerings for both students and the surrounding community. A recent ribbon-cutting ceremony for this expansion was attended by university leaders, members of the design team and key community stakeholders including Springfield Mayor Ken McClure.
The Enterprise Center is Drury’s first new building in more than two decades. It is also the first capital project resulting from the university’s successful 2018 master plan created by Cooper Robertson. The new academic center plays an important role in accommodating growth at the rapidly expanding institution, which welcomes its largest-ever incoming class this fall.
Located at a highly visible intersection where the campus meets larger Springfield, the three-story structure replaces a surface parking lot.
The facility also incorporates an 11,000-square-foot Center for Executive Education attached to the main building by arcaded loggias. This 477-seat conference center and flexible event space dramatically expands the university’s ability to offer its longstanding workshops for local small businesses, as well as its capacity to host talks and other live performances. According to Drury leadership, it will be used extensively by the entire student body, as well as by community groups and other local organizations.
