Celebrating Our Newest Community: Ridge Walk North Living and Learning Neighborhood

UC San Diego Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla expressed how the new neighborhood was designed to enhance the student experience and promote student achievement.

“Ridge Walk North Living and Learning Neighborhood fosters academic success with dedicated study lounges and collaborative workspaces and supports students’ well-being and engagement with its fitness and wellness centers, a marketplace and communal recreation spaces,” Khosla said. “This community enhances the overall student experience by creating a seamless blend of residential life and academic resources which is a living proof of our vision as a student‑centered university.”

The chancellor also noted that the project’s completion advances the university closer to the goal of providing a four-year housing guarantee at approximately 20% below market rates. In fall quarter 2025, 2,400 students moved into the residential suites in Ridge Walk North, bringing the total number of housing units available for students across campus to a record-breaking 22,000.

Executive Vice Chancellor Elizabeth Simmons noted that Ridge Walk North represents the next evolution of student living, rooted in community, purpose and belonging.

“In addition to helping meet the critical need for additional housing units, UC San Diego’s living and learning spaces are designed in a spirit of collective impact,” Simmons said. “By intentionally weaving together inclusive residential facilities with innovative academic, administrative, cultural and recreational spaces, these neighborhoods create an ideal setting where interaction abounds and ideas flourish.”

Ridge Walk North is also the new home of Thurgood Marshall College, providing teaching and administrative spaces for the college. Thurgood Marshall College Provost, Leslie Carver, spoke about the integration of the college’s principles into the design of Ridge Walk North.

“Marshall was founded 55 years ago by student activists who emphasized student participation in governance and the importance of a curriculum that emphasized the study of the contemporary social problems of all people. We have worked very hard to bring that vision into this space,” Carver said. “Our partners in the design and construction process deeply listened to our history, vision and values as a college and translated this legacy into a physical space that will nurture generations of our students.”

Senior Associate Vice Chancellor of Residential, Retail and Supply Chain Services, Hemlata Jhaveri, mentioned that the proximity of academic, residential and social spaces at Ridge Walk North provides an ideal living environment for students.

“This new neighborhood was designed with the student experience in mind and exemplifies the benefits of living on campus," Jhaveri said. “Students are near their classes and do not have to commute and there are plenty of outdoor areas that foster community and inspire meaningful connections, as well as amenities that are just steps away from students’ living spaces. Goody’s Marketplace, our fifth and largest Amazon Just Walk Out technology location, is also onsite for the convenience of students.”

Isha Khirwadkar, a Thurgood Marshall College student, resident and Project Management & Technology intern with Capital Program Management (CPM), worked closely with Ridge Walk North project teams. She explained that working with her mentor, CPM architect Abigail Babaeian, gave her a holistic view of the project’s creation.

“I came to understand the incredible amount of care, creativity and collaboration that goes into transforming a vision into a space, especially one that students will call home for generations,” Khirwadkar said.

Jessica Mariel Pascual, a fourth-year Marshall student majoring in Public Health and Marshall Student Council Chair, shared a recent conversation with a fellow student where they reflected on what Marshall College’s transformation has meant to them.

“We talked about how we were the last class to know what was here before and the root of the college being moved forward to something new that would serve our students,” Pascual said. “For new students, this is home. For continuing students, this is a transformation. For alumni of the college, this is a continuation of the values, history and enduring spirit of Marshall.”

Pascual also took a moment to thank everyone involved with Ridge Walk North for their contributions to making the project a success.

“On behalf of our Marshall community — students past, present and future — thank you for believing in what this college is, can and will be. Here’s to the continuation of the legacy of Thurgood Marshall College, rooted forever in justice, diversity and big dreams, always moving forward,” she said.