Each year, SCUP's Pacific Regional Conference offers workshops, tours, and sessions to give SCUP members opportunities to learn, share knowledge and experiences, and connect with colleagues all over the region. Planning for the annual conferences starts months, even years in advance and is only made possible each year by a dedicated group of volunteers that make up the local host and conference planning committee. Our recent March 2012 Pacific 360 Newsletter acknowledges the contribution of some these individuals. Your membership dues underwrites the expenses of this volunteer work. If you're not a member, please join and contribute!

One such SCUPer is Cathy Blake, Associate Director, Campus Planning and Design, Stanford University. Pacific 360's editor, Cheryl Lentini, of HMC Architects, interviewed Blake:

Cheryl Lentini | Tell us what first interested you in SCUP and why you became actively involved in the organization's leadership and program development?

Cathy Blake | SCUP is a great organization for focused attention to issues that we on campuses deal with daily. The lessons learned from others are invaluable. I always believe in giving back and I am proud of our university, so I was thrilled to be able to help develop a rich and comprehensive program for a conference in my backyard.

Cheryl Lentini | You have been instrumental in organizing the Stanford conference. What does your role involve and how do you balance it with your duties at Stanford?

Cathy Blake | My primary commitment was to organize the tours and special off-campus events for the conference. We have five tours of different institutions, including one of Stanford that I am leading, one of Google that I am hosting, and we are also offering “5th Wheel Tours” during the educational sessions. There has been a lot of rewarding exchange between the various institutions and Chris Shay has been a master organizer of meetings and overall coordination so that has helped tremendously. This, coupled with some of my commitments to my other professional organizations, has me completely over-extended, but well supported by my own office and staff.

Cheryl Lentini | What are some of the highlights of the Stanford conference that you are most excited about bringing to the attendees?

Cathy Blake | I think the range of topics cover the contemporary issues all campuses seem to be grappling with today. The video conferencing with Asia is a great new experiment, but brings the Pacific Region all the closer. At Stanford we have completed $3.8 billion dollars of construction over the past 12 years and are still in the midst of major redevelopment. It is exciting to be able to show visitors so many new, state-of-the art projects and initiatives.

Cheryl Lentini | What are some of the major initiatives underway at the campus that you are involved in that might be of interest to our members?

Cathy Blake | We are currently building out malls and infrastructure to grow with the growing campus; we are in the middle of a Campus Entrance Study to develop identity and wayfinding for the campus. Within the past year we have completed a new School of Business, new School of Medicine Campus, Law School Campus and are in the process of completing the Science and Engineering Quad and buildings. We are currently constructing a major Concert Hall, a new academic art building and the Anderson Gallery that will house a world class collection of modern art. We are in the process of converting all of our energy from a cogeneration plant to a hot water exchange program; we are establishing a farm on The Farm and we are looking to establish an arboretum in our open space. New housing is next up for development.

Cheryl Lentini | Thank you for your time, Cathy, for this interview and for helping to make SCUP's largest-ever regional conference a sold-out event.

Each year, SCUP's Pacific Regional Conference offers workshops, tours, and sessions to give SCUP members opportunities to learn, share knowledge and experiences, and connect with colleagues all over the region. Planning for the annual conferences starts months, even years in advance and is only made possible each year by a dedicated group of volunteers that make up the local host and conference planning committee. Our recent March 2012 Pacific 360 newsletter acknowledges the contribution of some these individuals. Your membership dues underwrites the expenses of this volunteer work. If you're not a member, please join and contribute!

One such SCUPer is Emily Marthinsen, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Physical and Environmental Planning, University of California, Berkeley. Pacific 360's editor, Cheryl Lentini, of HMC Architects, interviewed Marthinsen: 

Cheryl Lentini | Tell us what first interested you in SCUP and why you became actively involved in the organization's leadership and program development?

Emily Marthinsen | Campus planning combines multiple disciplines—design, physical planning, program planning and more. SCUP emphasizes—was founded to support—that integration which is what drew me to the organization. I became more actively involved through presenting at conferences and at the suggestion of colleagues. Participation in SCUP became an important component of my own professional development.

Cheryl Lentini | What are some of the highlights of the Stanford conference that you are most excited about bringing to the attendees?

Emily Marthinsen | 1) The connection with Hong Kong will provide the opportunity to engage with colleagues and counterparts in Asia; 2) All three plenaries will provide opportunities to look broadly—in diverse settings—at campus planning, higher education and leadership.

Cheryl Lentini | What is the education mission of UC Berkeley and what is your role in the organization?

Emily Marthinsen | “The University’s fundamental missions are teaching, research and public service.” I am Assistant Vice Chancellor for Physical & Environmental Planning. In that role I am responsible for early project development including program and project definition, options analysis and alignment with overall campus plans and planning policy. I am responsible for the campus design review process, coordination with our host cities related to planning issues and the implementation of the 2020 Long Range Development Plan.

Cheryl Lentini | What are some of the major initiatives underway at UC Berkeley you are involved in that might be of interest to our members?

Emily Marthinsen | Our student community center will be transformative—both for the physical campus and for student life. In the next month or so, we expect that Berkeley’s City Council will approve the Downtown Area Plan (DAP), an effort the City undertook in partnership with us. We are excited about potential physical improvements and economic development in Berkeley’s downtown as a result of programs and initiatives related to the DAP.

Cheryl Lentini | Thank you for your contributions to what is officially SCUP's largest-ever regional conference!

Each year, SCUP's Pacific Regional Conference offers workshops, tours, and sessions to give SCUP members opportunities to learn, share knowledge and experiences, and connect with colleagues all over the region. Planning for the annual conferences starts months, even years in advance and is only made possible each year by a dedicated group of volunteers that make up the local host and conference planning committee. Our recent March 2012 Pacific 360 Newsletter acknowledges the contribution of some these individuals. Your membership dues underwrites the expenses of this volunteer work. If you're not a member, please join and contribute!

One such SCUPer is Michael Fung, Director of Planning & Institutional Research, The Hong Kong University of Science & Technology. Pacific 360's editor, Cheryl Lentini, of HMC Architects, interviewed Fung:

Cheryl Lentini | Tell us what first interested you in SCUP and why you became actively involved in the organization's leadership and program development?

Michael Fung | I was drawn to SCUP’s focus on integrated institutional planning, an emphasis that is not replicated in other higher education associations and networks. In face of increasing global competition and rapid developments in the higher education sector, especially in Asia, planners play an increasingly vital role in strategic development of institutions. At the SCUP national conference last year, I linked up with John White and a number of members from the Pacific Region, and we got really excited discussing the possibility of a SCUP-Asia link. We have since taken the ideas forward, working with Chris Shay and team, and have put together what we believe would be an exciting and meaningful link-up between US and Asia, in the upcoming Higher Education Planning in Asia Forum (HEPA) held in Hong Kong, and the Pacific Region conference at Stanford.

Cheryl Lentini | You have been instrumental in organizing the concurrent Hong Kong event and the video linkage with the SCUP Stanford conferences. What does that involve and how do you balance it with your duties at HKUST?

Michael Fung | Getting this inaugural Asian event off the ground takes a lot of work. I am blessed to have an enthusiastic organizing committee (Bhupinder Singh from NUS, Kevin Downing from CityU, Bruce White from U of Canterbury), a team of dedicated and capable staff (Joyce Lam, Natalie Chang, David Shiu and more), generous support from industry sponsors, and the faith, support and encouragement from SCUP Pacific Region (John White, Chris Shay, John Long, and more). It has been a wonderful journey, and we are all looking forward to a successful event.

Cheryl Lentini | What are some of the highlights of the Hong Kong event that you are most excited about bringing to your attendees?

Michael Fung | Some of the highlights of the HEPA Forum in Hong Kong that we are very excited about are: Live video-link with the SCUP Pacific Region conference, allowing a high degree of back-and-forth interactions Participation by University planners from all across Asia, including Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Korea, Australia, and New Zealand Senior delegation from 16 UK institutions participating in part of the Forum With the diverse group of participants, the Forum will offer rich international perspectives, and we expect lots of interactions, networking, and mutual sharing and learning amongst senior colleagues. We also have a set of interesting topics lined up, such as setting up overseas branch campuses in Mainland China, driving change within institutions, insights in institutional risk management and disaster recovery, and more.

Cheryl Lentini |What are some of the major initiatives underway at HKUST you are involved in that might interest our members?

Michael Fung | There will be a system-wide shift from a 3-year to a 4-year undergraduate system in the Hong Kong universities, starting in Fall this year. This translates to a breathtaking 33% growth in undergraduate enrolment from the next academic year onwards. It has been a hectic past few years planning and co-coordinating the growth, including the redesigning of all our undergraduate programs, hiring of faculty, constructing new teaching and research facilities, enhancing student accommodation and amenities, and stepping up student recruitment locally and internationally. The pace of development and change will continue to accelerate as we approach Fall 2012. These are exciting times for HKUST, and the substantial growth provides a rare opportunity for us to sharpen our strategies and to align our institutions to new growth areas.

Cheryl Lentini | Thank you so much, Michael, for this interview and for your energies devoted toward integrated planning for higher education.