The University of Chicago celebrated on November 15 the official opening of the The John W. Boyer Center in Parisa new facility that will serve as a major regional hub for UChicago’s ambitious education, research and collaboration in Europe, the Middle East and Africa for years to come.

The center will bring together faculty, students, alumni and partners, while fostering relationships with scientists, policy makers and thinkers from around the world.

“Today is a celebration of our hosts and our friends who have welcomed us, supported us and made this place possible,” said President Paul Alivisatos. “It’s a physical place of great beauty, a physical place with brilliant design, but it’s also an idea of ​​how we can work together that’s extremely special.”

The celebration included a two-day symposium that brought together UChicago leaders, professors, and representatives from higher education and research institutions in France and Europe. It culminated in a ribbon-cutting event that included Marie-Christine Lemardeley, Deputy Mayor of Paris responsible for Higher Education, Research and Student Life; Lamia El Aaraje, Deputy Mayor of Urban Planning, Architecture, Grand Paris and Accessibility; Jérôme Coumet, mayor of the 13th arrondissement of Paris; and UChicago alumni and friends.

“I am delighted to see that all of our shared ambitions have been realized to provide students and researchers with a campus of outstanding architectural quality in the heart of the city,” said Lemardeley at the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Designed by renowned architecture firm Studio Gang, the Center is located in the heart of Paris Rive Gauche in the 13th arrondissement of Paris, a vibrant neighborhood close to the Université Paris Cité Grands Moulins campus and the French National Library. the new building, financed largely by a collective outpouring of donationsit nearly triples the size of the former UChicago Center in Paris, which opened in 2003.

A vertical campus, learning and research areas wrap around a central staircase that connects the spaces both physically and visually. The center also offers event spaces, a roof garden, amphitheater, classrooms, a library and dedicated workspaces for research teams and visiting scholars. It is also home to the new International Research Institute of Paris (IIRP), which supports UChicago collaborations across Europe, Africa and the Middle East.