2008 SCUP Founders' (Casey)
Award Recipients
M. Perry Chapman is the 2008 recipient of SCUP's Founders' (Casey) Award for Distinguished Achievement in Higher Education Planning. He demonstrates the qualities after whom the award was named – K.C. Parsons, charter member of SCUP and first president. Parsons’ work always focused on contributing to the community and he measured success by the impact his work had on people using the space or facility he had planned. He was also a strong proponent of mentoring.
Chapman has managed or directed his firm's work at 85 colleges, universities or other educational institutions in 33 states and 3 foreign countries over 43 years. His work has spanned several cycles of change in campus development from the explosive growth of the 60s, to enrollment and financial retrenchment of the 70s and 80s, to environmental and community renewal today.
He has raised the standard of planning theory through his research and analysis of the relationship between the campus as a place and its impact on the learning experience and the sense of community.
He has been deliberate in cultivating and disseminating knowledge to the campus community and larger communities through writing and speaking.
He has been a mentor and advisor for colleagues in institutions, other firms, and community organizations, sharing knowledge, offering ideas, and collaborating on projects and public endeavors.
In Planning for Higher Education articles, Chapman was one of the first to write about the impact of universities as sponsors of real estate development; to chronicle social forces affecting campus design in post World War II decades; and to talk about the importance of place and community in the campus learning experience.
Chapman has presented papers and spoken on panel discussions and workshops at a dozen international and regional SCUP conferences on topics ranging from the planning implementation process to the greening of the American campus to the impact of technology on campuses.