Having a deep history as missionaries, educators, explorers, and artists, The Society of Jesus (The Jesuits) are unique to other Catholic orders. To best protect and share their rich history, the Jesuits chose to centralize their archival materials in a new, single-purpose facility in Saint Louis. Prior to this project, these collections were scattered throughout the Central and Southern Provinces including Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Florida, Puerto Rico, and Belize.

Based on the concept of Collective Memory as a way societies connect the present and past to preserve social cohesion, the design creates a protective two-story structure supporting the past (archival storage) joined to a two-story volume representing the future (research and collaboration spaces). Demarcated by a single line bisecting the building east to west, the point where the two spaces connect (the present) culminates in a large, vertical stained-glass window. Opening up to the east, the ceiling includes a clerestory window and glass curtain wall along the street facade, beckoning the public inside. Large meeting rooms and exhibition spaces combine the scholarship of Jesuit history with reflections on current events.