Rekindling student connections and collaboration that had waned since the pandemic, the new Boyle Center for Women’s Leadership, Entrepreneurship & Innovation acts as a vibrant student “living room” for St. Mary’s Academy and an inviting gathering space students can call their own. The 3,600-square-foot project renovated the outdated library of the Catholic girls’ private preparatory high school, creating space for lounging, meeting, innovating, and technology—all while celebrating the history and uplifting the brand of the academy.

Named after alumna and community leader Mary Shindler Boyle, the new Center sits just off the building’s entry on the first floor of the school. Students, visitors and potential recruits are first greeted by the Heritage Gallery, a space featuring custom casework to showcase artifacts and memorabilia honoring the school’s 165-year history. In the adjacent Leadership Lounge students can socialize and collaborate, and the Innovation Lab, complete with a 3D printing station, acts as an entrepreneurial space for creating, experimenting, and exchanging ideas. Curved, built-in soft seating supports a comfortable environment where students can decompress, while reconfigurable furniture options adapt to varied academic and social needs.

With advanced technology a priority, the Boyle Center features a dedicated recording studio and adjacent control booth enabling students to host podcasts, record short films, and broadcast media. By reconfiguring the building’s existing soffits our design opened up the Boyle Center’s overall space, while the navy hues of St. Mary’s are incorporated throughout to reinforce school pride. The reimagined library, refreshed with removed stacks and casework, offers room for teaching, board meetings, and events.

Elevated with uplighting, natural daylighting, and special design moments in smaller-scale spaces, the Boyle Center brings a level of sophistication appropriate to the college-preparatory education St. Mary’s offers as it prepares students for leadership and service in the world.