John Jay Club Row is a generous new hub for student extracurricular groups on the Manhattan campus of John Jay College of Criminal Justice. This interior renovation project is positioned on the second floor of the College’s New Building, designed by SOM and completed in 2011, directly off its 11th Ave entrance atrium. It makes the most of this high-traffic location by transforming a warren of disconnected rooms into an expansive suite that invites open collaboration and fosters community activity with ample spaces for gatherings of all sizes.

The heart of Club Row is its central club meeting area, where students can work individually or meet in small groups at custom millwork booths, which include wheelchair-accessible configurations. The booths are organized in two columns defined by their materiality: white oak woodwork lends warmth and solidity to the internal row, while their counterparts along the curtain wall façade allow natural light to filter through their translucent acrylic. A bright, playful color palette creates a comfortable and lively atmosphere, while taking the work of its student users seriously. The design features a wall of storage lockers assigned to individual clubs; the lockers’ custom felt covers create a geometric backdrop that dampens noise and provides space for decoration.

The social character of the club meeting area is complemented by a large multipurpose room that can be divided into three smaller rooms for meetings and events using movable partitions. Club Row offers dedicated club rooms for student groups with specialized needs, such as a newsroom for the school newspaper and a soundproof recording studio, as well as a new campus store and offices for administrative staff. This project uses design to empower and grant agency to a diverse student body by constructing a comfortable, beautiful, and flexible facility for their independent use.