The HSEB draws its design inspiration from surrounding mountains and canyons, and it responds to local climactic conditions characterized by intense sunlight and extreme temperatures. Inspired by the iconic canyon formations found throughout Arizona, the facade reinterprets stratified earth layers as a copper sunscreen protecting the building from direct solar exposure. The copper skin is formed, bent, pressed and perforated to create a visual connection to the surrounding mountain range. The "canyon" is the building's central organizing element. It is clad in burnished concrete building block to provide cool thermal mass and reflectivity; it is shaped to maximize self-shading, allowing light from, and visual connection to, the exterior. Defined by two academic wings and the "mixing bar", this exterior space is protected overhead by a fabric structure, and tempered with landscaping and semi-conditioned relief air. This relief air of the building is introduced at the first-floor level, cooling the space, as the ambient temperature can be well over 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

The copper cladding creates long horizontal sunscreens on the south elevation to provide shading for the generous openings. North elevations were provided with vertical fins to block the low sun towards the end and beginning of summer days. With the desire to minimize direct sun intrusion into the interior spaces, the building was computer modeled, and sun exposure simulated for every day of the year. The modeling tested the efficacy of the shading devices and informed their design. Generally, very few openings were introduced at the east and west facades. These walls have incisions that introduce light through facets protected from direct east or west sun. The ground level of the east facade abuts the main campus quad and is the primary entry for the building. This lower elevation was provided with glazed walls that welcome the outdoors, but were provided large copper overhangs to provide maximum shading.

The building is designed to be highly sustainable by minimizing waste of every kind. Mechanical systems are engineered to be highly efficient and easy to maintain. The canyon space, shaded from above and the sides, is made comfortable through the introduction of tempered "waste" building relief air which would normally have been exhausted to the roof of the building. Lighting is designed to be highly efficient and augmented wherever possible by controlled daylight. Interior materials selected were chosen for durability and beauty, as well as for their high-recycled content.