May 24, 2021
Oakland University’s Human Health Building has been selected as the winner of the 2021 Best of Rochester Award in the category of science by the Rochester Award Program.
The annual awards program was created to honor the achievements and accomplishments of local businesses throughout the Rochester area. Recognition is given to those companies that have shown the ability to use their best practices and implemented programs to generate competitive advantages and long-term value.
Various sources of information are gathered and analyzed to choose the winners in each category. Winners are determined based on the information gathered both internally by the Rochester Award Program and data provided by third parties.
About the Human Health Building
Completed in September 2012, the 161,000-square-foot Human Health Building serves as the primary residence of Oakland University’s School of Nursing and School of Health Sciences, and includes five stories of lecture, seminar, and lab-style classroom spaces designed to better facilitate the academic development of its tenants.
“The Human Health Building is home to one of the largest nursing programs in the state of Michigan,” said Dr. Judy Didion, dean of OU’s School of Nursing. “Because of the amenities it offers, including a state-of-the-art simulation lab, the building provides a sense of community for our students, staff and faculty while promoting health at all levels.”
The building also boasts an environmentally-friendly design by virtue of its construction from renewable materials; advanced air quality and water conservation systems; and geothermal heating and cooling systems, which aids in the reduction of carbon emissions and energy consumption and output. Due to the success of these innovations, the Human Health Building was certified a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum Building in 2013, the first such designated building on a university campus in the state of Michigan.
“It’s a very ‘green’ building,” Didion said. “It combines the idea of caring for humans and caring for the environment in a sustainable, healing environment. I think that’s pretty special.”