Frequently Asked Questions

Tours of the BSC run approximately 1 hour, and are currently being offered at 11am and 3pm each day. Tour sizes are limited to 12 people, but larger groups or additional tour times can be coordinated by emailing [email protected].

Click here to sign up for a tour!

Yes. Service animals, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), are allowed in all common areas.

The BSC is a smoke-free facility. No smoking or vaping of any kind is permitted within any facilities or around the facility grounds.

Currently, long-term personal storage is not available in the BSC.

Food and beverages will be permitted in most areas of the BSC, including lounges and designated common spaces. However, certain spaces—such as performance venues, rehearsal rooms, and technology-equipped meeting spaces—may have restrictions to protect equipment and maintain cleanliness.

The BSC will have at least three pianos available in a designated rehearsal space. Additional portable keyboards may be available upon request.

BSC rehearsal spaces will include mirrors, ballet bars, music stands, and AV capabilities. Some rooms may have built-in sound systems, projectors, and specialized lighting.

Most multipurpose rooms will be equipped with AV technology, including projectors, speakers, and microphones. However, availability may vary based on room setup.

Yes, to maintain the sprung wood floors, activities requiring hard-soled shoes, heavy equipment, or excessive impact may be restricted. Dance Marley will be available in the dance studio and users may be required to wear appropriate footwear or use protective mats.

Basic supplies such as easels, digital workstations, and general-use materials will be available in the Creative Media Center. However, students may need to bring their own specialized materials for projects.

No, academic classes will not be held in the BSC.

The Bloomberg Student Center is open for all Johns Hopkins students and learners, postdocs, staff, and faculty. Please note that JHMI badges are not compatible with the card readers our newest buildings, including the BSC and the Hopkins Bloomberg Center in Washington, DC; a J-Card Mobile Credential is required to access these buildings. This requirement is expected to extend to other Homewood facilities in the future.

Signing up for a J-card Mobile Credential is free, easy, and takes just a few minutes. Step-by-step instructions for setting up both Apple and Android devices can be found on the J-Card website.

Card swipe data provides important occupancy reporting and ensures the building is staffed appropriately for cleanliness, safety, and support. Since this is a brand-new space, accounting for occupancy trends as we open the building helps us to more accurately operationalize the support required for a variety of university affiliates.

A phased opening of student center spaces and amenities is planned through the first year of operations while we continue working to make the space fully functional. At this time, access is limited to JHU students, faculty, and staff, but we will have more to share as building operations get up and running.

Portions of the building, such as the food hall and certain event spaces like the theatre, will open to neighbors from the surrounding community at a future date to be determined after the building and its amenities are fully operational.

Yes! During 2025 – 2026 academic year, the BSC will be open to JHU students, faculty, and staff with a valid J-Card. Guests are welcome when accompanied by their host and must check in at the Welcome Desk.

Affiliates—including faculty, students, and staff—are responsible for their guests at all times and are expected to follow the building’s guest policy by escorting them to the welcome desk for check-in.

Visitors without a J-Card must complete the required sign-in process, which includes presenting a valid government-issued ID for verification and signing a waiver acknowledging personal responsibility and liability.

Yes. JHU Public Safety personnel are responsible for the safety and security of our campus community on a 24/7 basis, including the BSC.

Public Safety personnel along with other university partners will be stationed at the Bloomberg Student Center welcome desk. Our Public Safety team will also maintain a visible presence throughout the building to ensure safety and support operations of the space.

Catering for events in the BSC will follow university event dining guidelines, with several flexible options available. Hopkins Dining’s 1876 Distinction is the preferred on-campus catering provider, offering a wide range of services—from casual meetings to large receptions—with a focus on sustainable practices and exceptional service.

In addition, a selection of pre-approved outside caterers and BSC Food Hall vendors will be available to support campus events. Student organizations may also request to use EZCater, a university-supported food delivery platform that connects to student organization funding accounts.

For health and safety reasons, cooking or prepping food on-site is not permitted. Student organizations are encouraged to explore catering or delivery options for any events involving food.

Student organizations may bring in food for events, provided they follow university food safety guidelines.

BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group) and Shepley Bulfinch.

The Mattin Center opened in the spring of 2001. While the building was slightly less than 20 years old, our space requirements have evolved over time, and the building design did not accommodate the larger gathering venues our students seek today.

The Mattin Center was funded by dozens of donors, including Christina Mattin (A&S ‘76). We take our commitments to donors very seriously and deliberately engaged them in the design process for the new student center.

The student center not only honors our commitment to the arts but also directly provides rehearsal and performance spaces tailored to the dynamic needs of our student artists. We will continue to celebrate our alumni and friends who have championed student spaces and the arts at Hopkins, ensuring their legacies remain an integral part of our community.

Hopkins has focused on local dining options for the student center as part of the university’s ongoing strategy to leverage every opportunity to invest directly in Baltimore’s local economy and local small businesses and support Baltimore’s entrepreneurial community.

Since 2016, Johns Hopkins has procured more than $1 billion in goods and services from local businesses, including dozens of food vendors, caterers and suppliers that feed thousands of students and employees at the university and health system.

Hopkins dining has partnered with four local vendors to bring a coffee shop, a full-service restaurant, and four quick-service food stalls to the BSC. New dining options that highlight Baltimore’s vibrant food scene include:

Koshary – A spin on Baltimore’s popular Koshary Corner, this stall will serve Egyptian-inspired dishes such as lentil, rice, and pasta bowls, plus halal shawarma, falafel, and vegetable-forward options.

Connie’s – Building on the success of Connie’s Chicken and Waffles, this expanded menu will feature chicken sandwiches, wings, tenders, breakfast favorites, and more.

Urban Kitchen – Created by the team behind Hampden’s Urban Oyster, this concept brings bold flavors with items like brisket bánh mì, mushroom fritters, burgers, and salads.

Lucky Danger – Led by Hopkins alum and award-winning chef Tim Ma, this stall will serve approachable yet modern takes on Chinese-American classics.

Any Day Now – Also operated by Tim Ma, this comfortable café space will offer fresh coffee and light bites, perfect for study breaks or morning starts.

Bento Sushi – this campus favorite will be opening a second location in the BSC.

Yes, students will be able to use Dining Dollars to purchase food and beverages at both the Food Hall and Mo’s Place, the HSC’s full-service restaurant. However, Dining Dollars cannot be used to purchase alcohol, and meal swipes are not accepted for any purchases at the BSC.

Ma hospitality will be the operator for Mo’s Place. They will hold the liquor license and be responsible for the service in the location. Only beer and wine will be available for service, by the glass. Chef Ma’s team will be certified through the national recognized certification for alcohol service “TiPS,” and all patrons under the age of 30 will be required to show ID.

Hopkins Dining oversees the food operations at BSC, with a dedicated manager working closely with the local partners.

Student-focused events, including institutional programs, registered student organization events, and arts performances, have the highest priority.

The Bloomberg Student Center provides small (2-6 people) huddle spaces for impromptu gatherings or conversations among students. These spaces are for student use and can be requested for up to two hours, no more than four times witinh a week, and scheduled up to 24 hours in advance. In order to reserve these spaces, you must use the University’s scheduling system, 25Live.

To authenticate, go to the 25Live site, put in your username and password, and as long as you have a JHED, it will allow you to see available space and request a room using Express Scheduling

A student-focused event is defined as an event with audiences where 90% of the attendees will be JHU students or incoming students.

Events in the Bloomberg Student Center may be scheduled to begin 30 minutes after the building opens and must end 30 minutes before the building closes each day. This ensures adequate time for setup and cleanup by staff. Be sure to reference the BSC Hours of Operation to plan your event within the approved timeframes.

Yes, tabling will be available both indoors and outdoors at the Bloomberg Student Center. The indoor tabling location is still being finalized, and more details will be shared prior to opening. Outdoor tabling will take place on the plaza adjacent to the Food Hall entrance, offering a highly visible space for student organizations to connect with the campus community.

Students and departments will not be charged for using BSC spaces. However, fees may apply for additional services or equipment beyond standard use.

BSC spaces are not intended to be rented by non-university groups.

Department events that are not student-focused can only reserve spaces Monday through Friday from 8am–3pm during the academic year. Non-student-focused events are not permitted on weekends unless they occur during a break period when students are not in session.

To prioritize student access and allow for a successful transition into the new building, reservations from departments outside of Student Affairs will be accepted starting October 15, 2025. This initial period ensures students have the opportunity to engage fully with the space during its early launch phase.

The building is named for JHU alum Michael R. Bloomberg (WSE ’64) in recognition of his extraordinary commitment to supporting students across Hopkins and the impact that he has had on the student experience over many years, including his landmark gifts supporting financial aid.

The Bloomberg Student Center was funded through the generous contributions of more than 350 alumni and donors who joined together to provide the philanthropic support necessary to finally bring a student center to life on the Hopkins campus.

The acronym BSC is the official shorthand for the Bloomberg Student Center to help distinguish it from the Bloomberg Center for Physics and Astronomy on the Homewood campus and the Hopkins Bloomberg Center in Washington, D.C.

As for nicknames, we expect that—like “The Rec” for the O’Connor Center or “The Hut” for the Hutzler Reading Room—any informal name for the BSC will emerge organically from the student community.

Yes, the Bloomberg Student Center will offer a variety of student employment opportunities across its operations, including roles in event support, customer service, creative media, and building management.

The BSC is designed to be a hub for student engagement, providing spaces, amenities, and opportunities for students to socialize, connect, create and relax.

No, academic classes will not be held in the BSC.

For generations, Hopkins students have voiced a desire for a dedicated student center that promotes social interaction and encourages community-building beyond the classroom. The university announced that it had secured philanthropic support for a student center in March 2019, kicking off a collaborative process in which input from students helped shape the vision for the building and its programmatic offerings.

Throughout the development of the student center, students have actively influenced the experience, beginning with their votes in the design competition to select the project’s architect and envision the future space. ,Additionally, the dining program was developed through a collaborative selection process. Finalists selected from over 100 local small businesses in Baltimore were invited to share their food with the Hopkins community at a campus expo, where more than 200 students, staff, and faculty provided feedback. The result is a dining lineup that reflects both the diversity of Baltimore’s food scene and the tastes of the Hopkins community.

Actually, every program element in the Bloomberg Student Center was informed by student feedback. Before design began, JHU partnered with a consulting team to conduct a year’s long exercise to determine what JHU students wanted in a student center. 18 formal engagement sessions were conducted that included over 1500 participants.

Above all, we learned that students sought a place to exercise creativity. That is why the building includes flexible multi-purpose spaces designed to support dance, music rehearsal, painting and ceramics, and, of course, theater.

The building will be managed by Student Affairs, in close collaboration with Johns Hopkins Facilities & Real Estate (JHFRE) and Public Safety. This partnership ensures smooth operations and a safe, well-maintained environment.

The Bloomberg Student Center reflects years of student input and campus-wide collaboration. Student Affairs is committed to listening and incorporating student voices and will establish a student advisory board to regularly gather input on building operations and potential improvements. In addition, students will be able to submit feedback at any time via a QR code that links to a feedback form.

The Bloomberg Student Center is designed with sustainability as a core priority and is currently targeting LEED Platinum certification. The BSC’s sustainability charter focuses on three key goals: student health and well-being, environmental stewardship, and resource conservation.

Student Health & Well-Being – The building incorporates mass timber construction, bird-safe glass, and Red List-free materials to create a healthier indoor environment. Additionally, biophilic design elements and improved air filtration contribute to occupant wellness.

Stewardship of the Local Environment – The BSC features a reimagined landscape with outdoor gathering spaces that support biodiversity and sustainability initiatives. A stormwater retention system helps manage runoff and reduce environmental impact.

Conservation of Resources – The BSC is built for energy efficiency, featuring tiered roofs with solar panels, carbon-sequestering concrete, radiant flooring, and a high-efficiency HVAC system utilizing variant refrigerant flow and dedicated outdoor air filtration to minimize energy and water use.