URI / Center for Chemistry & Forensic Sciences

The new Center for Chemical & Forensic Sciences (CCFS) at URI is a premier facility that provides state-of-the-art research and teaching space. It drives innovation across critical fields, including forensic science, energy storage, energetic materials, polymeric materials, and sensors.

This four-story structure completes the new Health & Life Science District on the northern edge of URI’s Kingston campus, drastically boosting the university’s capacity. Compared to the former Pastore Hall, the CCFS offers triple the space for teaching labs and nearly double the capacity for research labs. This expansion is essential for supporting the more than 7,000 students who enroll in chemistry courses each year.

Sited as an architectural gateway, the building actively shapes the campus experience. It connects pedestrian paths from the original campus quad and frames an existing rain garden. The massing reinforces pedestrian flow at this important junction, offering two main entrances. The primary at-grade entrance leads to the lower lobby, general chemistry laboratories, lecture halls, and administrative offices. An upper pedestrian path crosses a new outdoor terrace, providing direct access to the second level, which houses the double-height upper lobby, organic chemistry teaching laboratories, instrumentation lab, and departmental offices.