Building Its Future

Columbia Business School’s new Manhattanville campus will define its evolution

- Dimitra Kessenides

Henry R. Kravis Hall (center) is part of Columbia Business School’s new Manhattanville campus in West Harlem; the $600 million, 492,000-square-foot project, which also includes David Geffen Hall, opened in January

What does it take for a business school founded 106 years ago to reposition itself?

One step might be a new campus, removed from the school’s historical base but still close enough to participate in the intellectual activity of its Ivy League parent. Add to that sustainable state-of-the-art buildings that reject traditional school designs in favor of spaces connecting students with the local and global communities they’ll one day work with and lead in.