NYU Child Study Center

New York, NY

The NYU Child Study Center innovated as the first of its kind facility and program in the nation. The center provides clinical care for children and adolescents, as well as scientific research programs to study the mental health and developmental challenges from birth through young adulthood. Programs at the center train child and adolescent psychiatry residents and fellows, scientists, child psychologists, undergraduates, medical and nursing students, postdoctoral fellows, interns, and social work candidates. The Center also hosts frequent community-based trainings, webinars, and workshops, for parents, and healthcare educational professionals. 

As such, the design of the child study center required a multi-tasking approach to accommodate all functions of each department. The success of the facility positioned deeply on an innovative design approach. The overriding concern was how do you design a facility that appeals to young children, toddlers to preteens, as well as teenagers, but does not pander to the obvious? Children and Toddlers are often frightened by the notion of going to a “Doctors Office". Preteens  and  teenagers might resist the facility because it is “uncool” and juvenile. The design resolution was to turn to current in vogue clothing retailers that were appealing to the same demographic and identify what made these facilities successful go to destinations. An unpretentious atmosphere was created with clean lines, easy way finding, natural wood tones, simple color palettes, multitasking durable furniture, and strong geometries. The facility through strategy does not indulge preconceived infantile design aesthetics, it merely promotes an identifiable language that relates to the intended population.