Cedarville Biblical Studies Center

Cedarville University, Cedarville, Ohio

Paul J. Ford and Company designed a new 59,200 square foot two-story Biblical Studies Center for Cedarville University. The first floor houses the dean’s office and several classrooms, two of which has auditorium seating of up to 180 students. The second floor is divided into numerous administrative offices, classrooms, learning centers and testing labs.

This educational facility utilizes structural steel moment frames supported on spread footings for their lateral stability. Some of the challenges for this framing system included the incorporation of 20-ft floor heights, large clear spans over the auditorium classrooms, and a two-story atrium at the main entrance. This atrium design has a full height two-story glass curtain wall system that is arranged in a saw-tooth pattern. This curtain wall system is also inset 20-ft from the northwest corner of the building.