Rawlins Honors Hall establishes a key campus edge while supporting a highly engaged academic and creative student community. As the first project completed under UNT’s new campus master plan, the five-story building helps define Gateway Park—a diagonal pedestrian mall and campus green that connects the residential precinct to the broader campus.

The residence hall provides 500 beds organized into 40-bed neighborhoods, fostering smaller communities within a larger residential environment.  Each neighborhood includes glass-wrapped corner lounges overlooking Gateway Park, reinforcing visual connection to campus life and encouraging interaction beyond individual rooms. 

A faculty-in-residence and a wide range of shared amenities—including study rooms, a reading library, commons and recreation spaces, multipurpose classrooms, program spaces, and a large student kitchen—support both academic focus and social engagement. In recognition of UNT’s nationally regarded music culture, the project incorporates an outdoor courtyard amphitheater and informal gathering spaces that support performance, collaboration, and daily use. 

Designed to respond to significant site topography, Rawlins Hall steps with the slope and features a split-level lobby that uses transparency to connect multiple campus conditions. The project addresses varied contextual edges, including the pedestrian mall, adjacent residential buildings, surrounding streets, and the nearby interstate, while adhering closely to the university’s design guidelines for massing, materials, and build-to lines.