The Rome Program has been the centerpiece of the School of Architecture’s curriculum for more than four decades, creating an aspirational legacy for generations of students who spend their third-year immersed in the Eternal City’s awe-inspiring grandeur. A new University building on Via Ostilia, behind the Colosseum, presents an opportunity to expand and deepen the Rome Program’s international focus on traditional and classical architecture and urban design.
The new space, estimated to open in the 2014-15 academic year, offers six times more space than the School’s current home, allowing the program to host more international conferences, more visiting scholars, and foster stronger connections with the University at large. The College of Arts and Letters also will have a presence in Rome, and the School envisions future partnerships with other University departments. Renovations of the former office building will allow the School to build lecture halls, library space, classrooms, and apartments for visiting faculty.
After the move, the School will house students in apartments near the new facility in the popular 19th-century neighborhood, allowing them to experience the city closer to how Romans do.