Lawrence Rubin: Building FSU’s Future

For many students, college is remembered through more than lectures and exams. It is the friendships formed, the traditions shared, the games attended, and the spaces where everyday campus life happens. At Florida State University, many of those spaces have been shaped by Lawrence Rubin, Director of Design and Construction, and his team of about 25 professionals. Rubin has spent more than three decades helping guide construction across FSU’s Tallahassee campus and satellite locations.

With a background in architecture, Rubin brings a strong eye for continuity and campus identity. He says one of the department’s long-term priorities has been “Having a consistent architectural theme,” supported by shaded walkways, plazas, courtyards, and gathering areas that make the campus feel connected.

Today, Rubin is helping lead some of Florida State’s most important building projects, including a new student center, a new interdisciplinary science building, and planning for a future home for the College of Business.

Strengthening the Student Experience

One of the largest projects under Rubin’s leadership is Florida State’s new student center. Construction began in May 2019, with the $150 million facility designed to replace a student union originally built in the 1950s. At the time the older union opened, FSU had around 10,000 students. Today, enrollment has grown to more than 42,000, creating a need for a larger, more modern center of student life.

The new center is being built to support FSU’s active residential culture. It will include larger ballrooms, meeting rooms, student government and activity spaces, a food court, a bowling alley, a sit-down restaurant, and an underground nightclub. The goal is to create a place where students can gather, connect, participate in campus traditions, and make the most of their college experience.

Rubin and his team studied student centers at several universities, including the University of Florida, the University of South Florida, North Carolina State, Duke University, and the University of Tennessee. Those visits helped the team think through how food, entertainment, traditions, and flexible gathering areas could work together in the new FSU space.

Rubin says the team wanted to preserve meaningful traditions, including a plaza for Market Wednesday and other outdoor activities. They also kept signature student favorites like the bowling alley and Club Down Under, which supports live music and entertainment.

Building for Research and Collaboration

Beyond student life, Rubin is also involved in Florida State’s Interdisciplinary Research & Commercialization Building, or IRCB. The $88 million science facility is planned for the university’s southwest campus, within the Innovation Park corridor near the College of Engineering, Mag Lab, and other research-focused buildings.

The 116,000-square-foot building is designed to support collaboration across research disciplines. It will include three floors of mostly open and flexible laboratory space, with room for 30 research groups, 24 postdoctoral researchers, and 155 graduate and undergraduate students. The design emphasizes interaction through labs, core facilities, and shared collaboration spaces, with completion expected in 2024.

Another major project on the horizon is Legacy Hall, the future home of FSU’s College of Business. Once completed, the building is expected to become one of the largest academic facilities on campus, with more than 218,000 square feet across five floors. Planned features include a central atrium, a 300-seat auditorium, a financial trading room, and a multipurpose event space.

For Rubin, the variety of work is one of the most rewarding parts of the role. His projects have touched nearly every part of campus life, from housing and athletics to science, research, music, art, and academic spaces.

A Career Built Across Campus

Rubin grew up in Chicago and earned his architecture degree from the University of Florida before pursuing graduate studies at Florida A&M University in Tallahassee. After working in the private sector, he joined Florida State in 1991 as a part-time project manager. He originally thought the opportunity might last only a few years, but the university continued giving him meaningful projects and new challenges.

Since then, Rubin has worked on a wide range of facilities, including Doak Campbell Stadium, student housing, swimming pools, a medical school, parking garages, laboratories, historic renovations, and many other campus improvements.

Now in the later stage of his career, Rubin is focused not only on buildings, but also on people. He enjoys mentoring younger staff members and helping them learn how to plan ahead, identify potential problems early, communicate clearly, and manage the challenges that come with complex construction projects.

For Rubin, that mentorship is part of the legacy he hopes to leave behind. As he puts it, “my successors will also be part of my legacy.”