FIU expands footprint, taps into the energy of Brickell Avenue and Lincoln Road


Florida International University has expanded its footprint eastward with the inauguration of facilities on Brickell Avenue and Lincoln Road that are engaging the South Florida community and benefitting students, business and the arts.

“As an anchor institution in South Florida, FIU needs to be where our students are,” said FIU President Mark B. Rosenberg. “Our growth strategy focuses our teaching, research and creative energies in service to and engagement with our community. Both Brickell and Lincoln Road are key engines of community creativity.”

This fall FIU welcomed 46,000 students, its highest enrollment in history, and 141 new faculty members. The two new locations augment existing facilities on two campuses, two other centers and The Wolfsonian-FIU on Miami Beach. FIU is expected to add 2,000 students a year for the next five years and award 100,000 new degrees by 2020.

FIU Downtown on Brickell

The state-of-the-art facility at 1101 Brickell Ave., celebrated its grand opening Friday, Sept. 16,  with a ribbon cutting.  

FIU Downtown on Brickell is home to several graduate programs in business, public administration and global governance, in addition to The Metropolitan Center, a public affairs center focused on economic development, land use, housing, and applied social research.

“Today’s business environment demands that leaders be knowledgeable of the latest management thinking and approaches,” said Executive Dean of the College of Business Administration Joyce Elam. “We will be offering the MBA as well as specialized graduate degree programs in international real estate, finance and healthcare administration that can help working professionals advance in their careers.”

FIU Downtown on Brickell also is home to the Master of Arts in Global Governance (MAGG), a signature degree offered this fall for the first time through the School of International and Public Affairs.

“We are delighted to be able to bring our extraordinary MAGG degree to professionals already working in the area,” said College of Arts and Sciences Dean Kenneth Furton. “We are also pleased that the Metropolitan Center, which has a long history of working with our urban leaders, will continue to serve that community at this new location.”

FIU Downtown on Brickell encompasses 32,000 square feet of space that house classrooms, case rooms, faculty and administrative offices and dining facilities. The space was built to FIU’s specifications and displays reproductions from The Wolfsonian-FIU collection. 

“Downtown Miami is now a vibrant urban center where people not only work but live – with 200,000 workers in the area daily and more than 70,000 residents calling it home,” said Miami Downtown Development Authority Director Alyce Robertson. “As an international destination, downtown will benefit greatly from the increased access to higher learning.”

College of Architecture + The Arts Miami Beach Urban Studios

Located in the iconic building at 420 Lincoln Road, the Miami Beach Urban Studios was inaugurated Tuesday, Sept. 20.

Miami Beach Urban Studios houses graduate design studios for architecture, landscape architecture and interior architecture students, practice rooms for music students, exhibition and graduate studios for visual arts students, performance spaces for theatre students, and classrooms for communication arts students.

The Miami Beach Urban Studios also will be home to the newly established Office of Engaged Teaching, Scholarship, and Creative Activities, headed by Miami artist Xavier Cortada, who will work collaboratively with FIU faculty on initiatives to engage local businesses, artists, designers, cultural institutions, and governmental agencies. 

“The arts are vital to the spirit of our community and serve as economic drivers,” said College of Architecture + The Arts Dean Brian Schriner. “We are fortunate to be able to provide our students the opportunity to engage with our communities while pursuing their professional studies on Lincoln Road.”

Dean Schriner noted that not only is the location of the studios at the center of the creative energy on Miami Beach, but the building itself is significant from an artistic and design perspective. Owned by long-time FIU supporter former U.S. Ambassador to Belgium Paul L. Cejas, the building is a shining example of 1940s Art Deco architecture. 

“Miami Beach’s commitment to education, culture, and our incredible architectural history defines us as a community,” Miami Beach Mayor Matti Herrera Bower. “We are so proud to have FIU locating a part of the college that includes all of those elements right here on Lincoln Road. It’s a perfect fit.”

Starting at 6 p.m., an open house will follow the Miami Beach Urban Studios’ grand opening. The event will feature all of the academic units of the College of Architecture + The Arts, including performances by FIU School of Music and Department of Theatre students, an model exhibit from the School of Architecture, and a photography exhibit by FIU Department of Art + Art History that features faculty, students and alumni.