Robert J. Schaeffner

Upon joining Payette in 1981, Bob became part of the firm’s expansion into research facility design. After completing seminal research projects for leading institutions such as Massachusetts General Hospital and Princeton University, he led the firm’s first academic project: the Severance Hall Chemistry Addition/Renovation at the College of Wooster.

Seeing this as an opportunity to further expand the practice, Bob helped develop Payette’s strong presence in college/university science facility planning and design. His seminal 1998 Article “Recovering from Sputnik” recognized the trend that the plethora of science buildings built in the 1960s and 70s (in the post-Sputnik era) were all failing in their systems, but more importantly, in how they served the rapidly changing world of science education. He has led a number of science center projects at prestigious colleges and universities which have positively transformed entire campus precincts.