Farther north, the Bradenton campus of Manatee Community College is friendly and welcoming despite its considerable size and the diversity of its architecture. Perhaps “architecture” is not the correct term to use in describing the calm and graceful consistency of this place. This may be neighborhood planning as much as academic architecture, for the buildings on the large campus have been knitted together by the use of common colors and materials in such a way that structures built many years ago live happily with strong newer buildings, such as the library and the student services complex on the central mall. The sole exception to this welcome unity is, ironically, the rather pedestrian new visual design center. Go figure.

Everywhere else, however, unified graphics, helpful signage, impeccable landscaping and strong horizontal lines are employed to please both spirit and body. And that, after all, is the duty of a college campus, now and always.