This project is a story of profound transformation: the conversion of a 65,000-square-foot historic hospital ward into a vibrant center for learning and spiritual practice for the Dharma Realm Buddhist University.⁶ Located within the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas, a 700-acre monastic community, the 1940s cast-concrete building was reimagined to serve a new and higher purpose.¹ The design required a delicate and sensitive approach, inserting modern academic functions and advanced building systems into a historic structure while honoring its contemplative setting.

The renovated university building now houses classrooms, a student center, faculty offices, lecture and meditation halls, a central lobby, and a café.⁶ The project scope included a complete reconfiguration of interior spaces, ADA upgrades, and all-new building systems and finishes. A key sustainable feature was the careful refurbishment of the building's existing radiant ceiling heating system, upgrading it with a new, highly efficient hydronic system to provide comfort while conserving energy.¹ The design's connection to the landscape was enhanced through a new ceremonial entry, informal seating areas, and two amphitheaters built into the surrounding hillside to serve as outdoor classrooms.⁶

Praxis's principal, Seth Dunn, served as Project Architect while at Siegel & Strain Architects, guiding the architectural transformation of this significant building.¹ This project showcases a unique and valuable combination of expertise in adaptive reuse, historic preservation, and design for mission-driven, culturally specific clients. It demonstrates a nuanced understanding of how to create spaces that support both rigorous intellectual inquiry and deep contemplative practice, an approach that lies at the heart of the Praxis integrative design philosophy.

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