John Jay College of Criminal Justice | SOM

Photography by © SOM | Eduard Hueber

“We designed a building for John Jay College that essentially accommodates the needs of an entire campus within a single building“, explains Mustafa K. Abadan, design partner at Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill (SOM). The new John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York is a response to the new needs of an institution that, after gradual growth over the years, recorded such a huge increase in student numbers after the attacks on the twin towers in 2001 that the existing facilities became inadequate. “With our social cascade and rooftop terrace, the students will now have more opportunities for the interaction and chance encounters that are so essential to education“.

Photography by © SOM | Eduard Hueber

John Jay College of Criminal Justice, part of the City University of New York since 1964, educates 15,000 students annually in emergency response, forensic psychology and cybersecurity. Before the construction of the new building, John Jay College was primarily located in Haaren Hall, an early 20th-century building fronting the 10th Avenue and North Hall, a former shoe factory on West 59th Street. The college had been steadily expanding for some time and after the September 11th attacks on New York, enrollment increased dramatically to the point where the school outgrew its facilities. The new building is a critical component of John Jay’s transformation into a senior college of The City University of New York system and it is an expression of the College’s continued commitment to ‘educating for justice’.