Polk Stanley Wilcox completes angular Bentonville medical school

Local architecture studio Polk Stanley Wilcox has completed the Alice L Walton School of Medicine in Arkansas, USA with an angular glass facade and colours informed by the surrounding Ozark Mountains.

Located on the campus of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, the Alice L Walton School of Medicine (School of Medicine) is one of three new buildings dedicated to health and the arts founded by Walmart heiress Alice Walton.

The School of Medicine is a four-storey building with an angled form and sloping rooftop park designed by New York studio OSD: Office of Strategy + Design that was informed by the surrounding "Ozark geology", according to the team.

"The building emerges from the landscape as a link between nature and community, its unique form and materials creating an academic environment purposefully designed to challenge convention and foster innovation in advancing a new health care model for the 21st century," said Polk Stanley Wilcox Architects design principal Wesley Walls.

At its front, the building's glazed facade angles inwards and features a deep cantilever over the entrance. Clad in brass and concrete, the angled form is meant to mimic natural limestone bluffs found in the nearby Ozark Mountains.

Along the back, the building splits into two arms separated by a semi-enclosed, ground-level courtyard.

One arm, which is covered by the rooftop park, extends further back and slopes downwards to meet the ground.

The other arm is made up of a rectangular, glazed form that leads out onto the rooftop and looks out over the interior courtyard and surrounding campus.

The broad sides of the building are covered in wedges of concrete and glass panels.

On the interior, the building contains a library, small group rooms, teaching spaces, offices and community spaces such as a student lounge and theatre.

It also contains a makerspace outfitted with 3D-printers so that students can "collaborate on 3D-printed anatomical models and other projects", according to the team.

The interior palette features terrazzo flooring, white oak millwork, walnut veneer and brass accents.

Opened in July 2025, the School of Medicine recently welcomed its first class of 48 students. It will  "waive tuition for the first five cohorts" of its MD program and "embraces self-care to empower students to care for their own well-being as well as that of their patients", according to its website.

It will also integrate teachings from the nearby Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, such as art therapies, and has been granted preliminary accreditation status by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education.

"An innovative curriculum focused on whole-person care requires an equally innovative building, and Polk Stanley Wilcox's design delivers in every way," said Alice Walton.

"Well-designed spaces play a role in our well-being, and as we train future physicians to successfully tackle the health care challenges of the 21st century, it's essential that we support their physical, mental, emotional, and social health."

Other buildings included in Walton's Crystal Bridges Campus project include the recently opened Heartland Whole Health building, designed by Marlon Blackwell Architects and an expansion to the art museum designed by Safdie Architects, set to open in 2026.

Elsewhere in booming Bentonville, Gensler and SWA Group completed a Walmart headquarters and Marlon Blackwell Architects created a series of asymmetrical, angular buildings for the Thaden School.

The photography is by Timothy Hursley

Project credits:

Design architect: Polk Stanley Wilcox: Wesley Walls, Mark Herrmann, Jason Landrum, Mandy Breckenridge, Laura Stanley, JB Mullins, Laura Hendrix, Anne Worley, David Rogers
General contractor: Crossland Construction
Landscape and green roof design: OSD: Office of Strategy + Design
MEPF and low voltage engineer: Henderson Engineers
Structural & building envelope engineer: Martin / Martin Consulting Engineers
Civil engineer: McClelland Engineers
Exterior fabrication and glass: MG McGrath, Inc.
Signage consultant: Two Twelve
Food service consultant: JME Hospitality
Green roof construction: Ozark Green Roofs

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