At the Rural Studio, the evening dinner used to be the time for students and faculty to come together to share food, ideas, and the day's events. In the last five years, the Rural Studio has outgrown the old dining room and replaced it with a scattered collection of disconnected spaces. This has resulted in a level of informality and fracturing of what used to be the "family dinner." The aim of the Great Hall is to restore a sense of ceremony and formality to the Rural Studio dinners and to once again seat everyone under one roof and at one table.

The structure, which is adjacent to the Morrisette House, is reminiscent and complimentary of the super shed pod area: a large "building within a building." Phase 1 of the project completed the roof , steel frame and decking. Phase 2 of the project will focus on the cross-ventilation and moveable walls.