St. John Catholic Church and Student Center, Stillwater, OK

St. John’s: The Building

The 40,700 square foot, $20 million St. John Catholic Student Center at Oklahoma State University, was completed during the pandemic and dedicated in 2024. Its new Chapel seats 380 and adjoins a Student Center serving university students of all faiths.  The center includes 32,200 square feet of meeting rooms, classrooms, small group, study and event spaces, and a large dining/conference hall. A soaring tower ensures that St John’s will be seen from across the campus and will stand out against the nearby Boone Pickens Stadium.  It rises 105’-9”  above the main building entry, and is topped by a 9’-0” gold-plated cross for a total height of 114’-9”. 

Variegated red brick and custom-colored pale cast stone trim were chosen for compatibility with nearby campus buildings and Boone Pickens Stadium.  While using a similar materials palette, the Romanesque style of the building contrasts with surrounding Colonial-style campus buildings.

The building’s rear includes a service ramp for loading and supply drop-off. Other features include an overlook deck adjacent to “St. Simeon’s Coop,” named for the pillar-sitting monastic saint.  The Coop is an apartment-like space for social events, cooking classes, and small group dining.

 The Chapel

Located to one side of the bell tower, the Chapel presents a striking appearance.  Its façade is inspired by the ancient basilica of San Ambrogio in Milan.  This church was selected as a model not only for its beauty and antiquity—it is one of the oldest extant Christian churches—but also for its brick construction, unusual for most ancient churches but common in the architecture of the northern Italian region of Lombardy. 

 The Connector

The double-height Connector links the sacred and secular: the Chapel and the student center.

A monumental stair and elevator link the main and upper levels.  The church, chaplain’s office and main dining room are on the main floor, and the upper level is study spaces and offices.  The Chapel’s exposed brick wall defines one side of the connector; the other main spaces of the center are visible through large glass windows on the opposite wall. 

 The Hofftorium

Envisioned as a beer hall without the beer, the 300-seat “Hofftorium”—so nicknamed by the center’s chaplain—is the largest room in the center.  A flexible-use space, it can convert from dining to conference space with a change of furniture.  It is also equipped with study tables and lounge seating for socializing with friends when not otherwise in use. A large commercial kitchen adjoins the hall.

 The Student Center

The exterior of the student center is softened by full arches on the upper level and segmental arches below. These shelter large windows that bring a sense of the outdoors into the interior spaces beyond.

 The Thinking Quad

On the second floor is the center’s second-largest room, the Thinking Quad. This large flexible-use space is lined on one side by meeting/prayer rooms, small conference rooms where 6-8 students can gather with a priest or staff member to pray or discuss. A library in the base of the tower, two larger lecture/meeting rooms, and the Coop complete the program of student spaces.  Around the rear of the second floor are faculty and staff offices, placed so students can find them easily and can participate in the center’s many activities.

 The Interiors

The interiors of the chapel and the center were planned and designed by Cram and Ferguson Architects. The furnishings and finishes of the Student Center were selected by A-Line Designs of Oklahoma City.  Three Italian churches inspired the chapel: the exterior was derived from San Ambrogio in Milan, the basilica-style interior from Sant’ Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna, and the murals over the sanctuary from San Clemente in Rome, specifically its famous Vine and Branches fresco.  Rich Italian book-matched marble line the nave and sanctuary floors.  The stone altar, tabernacle shrine, and the apse’s decorative painting cycle were also designed by Cram and Ferguson.  Over the sanctuary arch are a depiction of twenty-four saints inspired by the twenty-four elders of the Book of Revelation.  Other symbolism and inscriptions are drawn from the writing of the Apostle John.