Rapid Growth and Expansion

The University's consulting architect, Douglas W. Orr (1954-1966), sought modesty in the architecture of individual buildings in order to maintain a cohesive overall campus that supported the academic philosophies of the University. The objective was to incorporate elements of the past while providing flexibility for the needs of the future. Under Orr's direction, most traffic was removed from within the campus in order to return the campus to the students and pedestrians. Despite his emphasis on a student and pedestrian-oriented campus, a loss of connection to the larger landscape, through planting and through vistas, became even more pronounced with the introduction of more tightly spaced and larger-scaled buildings during the building boom in the 1960s.