If you were to wander across Centennial Campus, on the far side of Lake Raleigh, you would find a large house nestled in the woods at the end of a long driveway. 

That house is N.C. State’s Chancellor’s Residence and contains the kitchen named “best new room in America.” 

The kitchen was named the 2012 Room of the Year by the National Association of Home Builders, as part of the Best in American Living Awards.

The award-winning kitchen was designed, along with the rest of the chancellor’s residence, by Marvin Malecha, Dean of the College of Design.

As described by Malecha, the room exists with an familial aesthetic that is both inviting and distinguished.

Vaulted ceilings create a great openness in the room, while bookshelves remain lower, allowing one to see outside and natural light to penetrate inside.

Malecha noted a key principle of the room’s design was the inclusion of as much natural light as possible. 

Natural light disperses throughout the room from all four cardinal directions; so much, that at any time of day, you can experience fresh sunlight.

A white ceiling, complimented by white walls,