At the intersection of where new meets old, and style meets sustainability, you will find Harvard Divinity School’s recently renovated main campus building—Swartz Hall. The elegant addition bridges the space between the original, century-old chapel and the new student classrooms and event space in a way that is at once modern and traditional.
The architecture is not the only thing of note, as Swartz Hall has been awarded LEED Platinum certification, the highest level designated by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) for healthier buildings.
“Among the Divinity School’s core values are care of our environment and advancing a more sustainable future,” said HDS Dean David N. Hempton. “Achieving LEED Platinum is a testament to the thoughtful, deliberate planning and actions taken during the renewal of Swartz Hall to create a space that embodies those values. I am so grateful for all those individuals who worked so hard to surpass our sustainability goals and produce a building that our community—and future generations—will benefit from.”
Swartz Hall underwent a total renewal from 2019 through 2021, thanks to lead gifts from artist and philanthropist Susan Shallcross Swartz and her husband, investor James R. Swartz ’64, Ralph James, MBA ’82, HDSEE ’18, HDSEE ’19, Cathy James Paglia, and the Robert and Ardis James Family Foundation, as well as other generous donors. The extensive work included installing efficient heating, ventilation, and air conditioning to significatly reduce energy consumption; emphasizing the use of healthier building materials to reduce the use of key chemicals of concern, such as PFAS “forever chemicals” and chemical flame retardants; diverting at least 75 percent of construction and demolition waste from landfills; reusing original granite for fireplaces; retrofitting new high-performance windows; and landscaping the area around the building with more than 50 trees and shrubs.
The renewal of Swartz Hall was the first major upgrade to the building since it was constructed more than a century ago. Harvard University’s only example of collegiate-Gothic architecture, Swartz Hall is at the center of HDS’s campus and contains modernized classrooms for flexible teaching and learning, faculty and staff offices, a café, numerous spaces for impromptu collaborations, a new multifaith space and adjacent ablution room, and the Preston N. Williams Chapel.
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), developed by the USGBC, is the most widely used green building rating system in the world and an international symbol of excellence. Through design, construction, and operations practices that improve environmental and human health, LEED-certified buildings proactivily promote sustainability.
Swartz Hall joins 144 other LEED-certified buildings on Harvard University’s campus, including 24 other LEED Platinum certified buildings. The sustainability measures taken as part of the Swartz Hall renewal will help advance the University’s effort to combat climate change and to make Harvard a fossil-fuel-free campus by 2050. Harvard University has had sustainable building standards in place since 2009.
“It is a stellar achievement for Swartz Hall, a historic building, to achieve LEED Platinum certification,” said Heather Henriksen, Harvard’s chief sustainability officer. “Harvard takes a holistic approach to sustainable development, and Swartz Hall demonstrates how a project can advance solutions to climate, health, and equity.”
HDS has a longstanding commitment to sustainability efforts. Staff, faculty, and students from across the School collaborate to educate and create change within the community and to enable a more sustainable future through present action. HDS sustainably purchases 100 percent of the campus electrical power through renewable energy credits using wind power and biomass for HDS electrical needs. In 2004, HDS introduced a green cleaning program, the first School at Harvard to do so. Since 2010, HDS has held a zero-waste Commencement in which all materials were either recyclable or compostable. Solar panels were installed on the Center for the Study of World Religions in 2014. The HDS Garden Group grows and donates fresh produce to a local food bank in Cambridge.
What’s more, Swartz Hall is not the first HDS building to be certified by the USGBC. After Rockefeller Hall, which includes classroom and office space, was renovated in 2008, it was certified LEED Gold. Rockefeller Hall was, at the time of its renovation, one of the most energy-efficient buildings at Harvard.
“The work of innovative building projects like the Swartz Hall renewal is a fundamental driving force in transforming the way our buildings are built, designed, and operated,” said Peter Templeton, president and CEO, USGBC. “Buildings that achieve LEED certification are lowering carbon emissions, reducing operating costs, and conserving resources while prioritizing sustainable practices and human health. Because of Harvard Divinity School, we are increasing the number of green buildings and getting closer to USGBC’s goal to outpace conventional buildings, while being environmentally and socially responsible and improving quality of life for generations to come.”
—by Michael Naughton and Carolyn Assa
For more information contact:
Michael Naughton
Senior Media Relations and Communications Lead, Harvard Divinity School
617.496.9147
mnaughton@hds.harvard.edu