Lauded over the years as one of the most beautiful campuses in America, Bryn Mawr is embarking on an ambitious plan to carry on that tradition while also better meeting the needs of students, faculty, and staff.
This week,was selected as the firm the College will be working with to create a Comprehensive Campus Plan that will touch on all aspects of campus life, including student space, academics, accessibility, dining, dormitories, libraries, athletics, administrative space, our graduate schools, and grounds.
DLR will hold on-campus listening sessions between September 2025 and January 2026 to engage the community in the process. They’ll be collecting data and feedback on a number of things, including how current spaces are utilized, what a library of the future would look like, how to improve residence halls, sustainability, the relationship between the physical campus and Bryn Mawr’s academic mission, and more.
“DLR's strong experience and approach towards engaging the entire campus community in the Comprehensive Plan process stood out to the Selection Committee,” says Samir Datta, Bryn Mawr’s Vice President for Finance and Administration. “We are excited to move forward with their team and confident that their expertise will greatly contribute to the success of this initiative.”
The Comprehensive Plan will continue the campus's pioneering American Collegiate Gothic traditions while modernizing all aspects of the community’s experience on campus.
Flexible academic spaces that link classrooms and research areas in the same buildings are a high priority as is centering the student and faculty experience in all aspects of design. For example, the plan will evaluate Bryn Mawr’s libraries with the goal of updating the libraries to meet student and faculty space and research needs.
"The plans for the library should be forward-thinking, with the goal of creating a 'Library of the Future.'" -- from the request for proposals created by the College
The Comprehensive Plan will also provide guidelines to upgrade building access and internal and external navigation to make the campus as accessible as possible.
Two areas of need that are already receiving attention this semester, even as the Comprehensive Plan is being developed, are creating more spaces on campus for students to gather and improvements to the dining halls, including the ability to accommodate the preparation and serving of food for those with allergies.
“The fact that we’re doing this comprehensive plan doesn’t mean we can’t address some things more immediately,” says Bryn Mawr President Wendy Cadge. “These are needs I heard from students and staff that we can act on now, and so we’re not going to wait. We will always be nimble, responsive, and strategic.”
The Student Spaces Project has already identified spaces in the Campus Center and Schwartz Gym based on student feedback that are expected to be renovated by the end of this summer. Dining Services is partnering with consultants who are versed in contemporary Collegiate Dining design and best practices to develop a short-term plan of how to effectively optimize the College’s current dining facilities.
The Comprehensive Campus Plan project is being managed by Campus Architect Jessica Vitali. There is an executive committee made up of senior leadership that will meet every two weeks and a larger steering committee that will meet monthly. Three working groups made up of students, faculty, and staff will meet regularly throughout the process. Each group will have a particular focus—the student experience, academic affairs, and institutional spaces. Visit the Comprehensive Campus Plan section of the website for information on each group.
“The more voices we hear from, the more successful this project will be,” says Cadge.
Project timeline:
Project Award and Kick-Off: April 2025
- Space Utilization Research: May 2025 – October 2025
- Space Utilization Final Analysis & Initial Planning Findings Presentation: October 2025
- On-Campus Engagement Sessions/Working Group Meetings: September 2025 – January 2026
- Presentation of First Draft of Comprehensive Plan: February 2026
- Final Draft of Comprehensive Plan and Presentation to Campus: April 2026
- Final Comprehensive Plan due to College: June 2026
The Comprehensive Campus Plan will be developed alongside the College’s Strategic Plan. Key themes likely to be addressed in the Strategic Plan include academic excellence, the student experience, access and inclusion, and the transformation of our facilities and operating systems.
"The transformation of our facilities and operating systems is a key priority to strengthen and enrich the College,” says Cadge. "Launching this Comprehensive Campus Plan is a big step toward ensuring that our physical spaces align with our values and aspirations. This plan will help us create an environment that supports academic excellence, fosters community, is sustainable, and enhances the overall student experience for generations to come."