New education building in School of Medicine aims to foster innovative learning environment

Roper Hall, the new 172,000-square-foot medical education building, opened its doors for students and faculty in UNC’s School of Medicine on Sept. 12. 

The facility features simulation labs, 24 clinical exam rooms and an experiential learning space. It replaced Berryhill Hall, the former SOM education facility built in 1970. 

More than 50 years later, a growing need for more healthcare professionals coupled with a new curriculum focused on team-based learning sparked the planning for a new building. 

Rayad Shams, the SOM’s student body co-president and a fourth-year medical student, said the administration and faculty considered student feedback for the building’s amenities and functionality. 

"I think it's been a collaborative effort between UNC School of Medicine and students," Shams said.

He said students requested more study spaces and natural sunlight, both of which can be found at Roper Hall. Instead of the standard classroom settings, the new building has a variety of designs that facilitate collaboration and meeting between students. 

According to a 2016 UNC Health press release, the previous building was suitable for a cohort of 100 students. The 2022 N.C. state budget provided funding for the SOM to increase its enrollment from 190 to 230 per cohort. 

In 2016, the UNC Board of Trustees unanimously endorsed the Connect NC bond, which loaned $2 billion to update the state’s public facilities, enhance economic development efforts of the state and attract new and existing industries and businesses. 

The bond was passed in March of that same year. It issued $68 million to UNC to help fund the new medical education building. 

Dr. Cam Enarson, vice dean for strategic initiatives for the SOM, said he became involved with the planning of Roper Hall back in 2016, when the University had to determine what the building was going to look like, what functions it would serve and where it would be located. 

He said the theme of the building is "mountains to sea", which aims to reflect the commitment of the School of Medicine to the state of North Carolina across the geography of the state. Art glass paintings are also being installed on each floor to represent different areas of the state, he added.

The site of the now-demolished Berryhill Hall for Roper Hall was chosen in the fall of 2019, and construction began in May of 2020, Enarson said. 

The new building was designed to have active learning opportunities in multiple formats, with circular tables, group and individual study rooms, clinical spaces and simulated nurse stations, experiential learning and more, Enarson said. 

On Sept. 12, associate professor Kurt Gilliland became the first educator to teach in the Active Learning Theater, a two-story 240-person classroom on Roper Hall’s first and second floors. 

Gilliland said that because many buildings on UNC’s campus were built around 1970, most do not have adequate, or even any, windows at all to promote a distraction-free learning environment.

Roper Hall is different from these older structures, and the plethora of large windows and excellent acoustics makes the new facility a “pleasant place, not only to take classes but also to study,” Gilliland said. 

Third-year medical student, Kristel Black, who spends most of her time at WakeMed – an off-campus site for SOM – said that between Marsico Hall and the Medical Biomolecular Research Building, UNC’s medical students always used to have to hunt for study spots.

Having all faculty and students under one roof promotes community and collaboration, which circles back to the concept of teamwork, Gilliland said. 

“I think it improves wellness, general connectivity and I think in the future, better education or just improving the medical education that UNC can provide,” Black said. 

@LenaMiano

@dailytarheel | university@dailytarheel.com