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Planning for Higher Education Journal

Published
October 23, 2025

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A New Campus Planning Paradigm Emerges . . .

. . . Addressing Declining Enrollment, Evolving Academic Technology, Online Learning, and Facilities Maintenance Costs

By: Mohammed Abdelaal, PhD, and Robert L. Ryan, PhD, FASLA

By reviewing campus plans and interviewing senior planners and administrators, the authors examined how 11 public universities in the Northeast and Midwest are responding to growing financial, pedagogical, and facilities risks.

From Volume 54 Number 1 | October–December 2025

Abstract: After decades of significant investment in campus development, US universities are now confronted with enormous challenges, including declining enrollment, evolving academic technology, online learning, and rising facilities maintenance costs. The authors of this research examined how 11 public R1 universities in the Northeast and Midwest are addressing these challenges through a review of campus plans and interviews with senior planners and administrators. This study argues that a new campus planning paradigm is gradually emerging in response to these risks, which highlights innovative strategies for place-based institutions to rapidly reexamine their prevailing capital planning priorities with a focus on adaptability and right-sizing campus facilities.

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Report

Published
July 3, 2024

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When City Parks Are Your Quad

Urban Campus Planning for Safety and Well-Being

By: Joel Pettigrew, MA, Higher Education Administrator and Strategist

This is a SCUP Fellow Research Project Final Report for the 2022–2023 program. This report explores how the urban campus can best support student development in a safe, yet open environment.
Abstract: How can the campus best support student development in a safe, yet open environment? On an urban campus, these concerns are intensified: There is much more localized activity for students to engage with in their city environment, and many more stakeholders influence how the institution can assert itself in that environment.

In this 2022-2023 SCUP Fellow research report, Joel Pettigrew reflects on how campus edge dynamics and student sense of security play out at several urban campuses. Pettigrew weaves together his operational understanding of campus life with a design understanding of how planners and architects approach the campus to explore how these “two languages” inform student security and well-being, and notes in conclusion that there are many research threads yet to follow.

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Conference Recordings

Published
March 19, 2021

2021 North Atlantic Regional Conference | March 2021

Experience vs Convenience

Yale and UConn are Embracing Transactional Dining

By: Jennifer Stone, Robert A.M. Stern Architects | Adam Millman, Yale University | James Benson, Yale University | C. Dennis Pierce, University of Connecticut | Robert Landolphi, University of Connecticut

Two universities share how their hospitality teams rethought their dining operations over the past year—UConn, as one of the country's largest self-operated food service programs, focused on maintaining diverse options; Yale, as a transformational organization, committed to table gatherings and healthy, locally-sourced food.
Abstract: Over the past year, the hospitality teams at Yale University and the University of Connecticut (UConn) have had to rethink their dining operations, shifting to a transactional approach to continue supporting student wellbeing. The two universities faced very different challenges: UConn, as one of the country's largest self-operated food service programs, focused on maintaining diverse options; Yale, as a transformational organization, committed to table gatherings and healthy, locally-sourced food. This session will explore how these programs have adapted to the current crisis and what their experiences teach us about the future of campus food service.

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Conference Recordings

Published
March 9, 2021

2021 Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference | March 2021

Using Technology to Facilitate a Safe Return to Campus

By: Alex Gentry, Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | Thomas Kase, Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | Jason Wolfgang, Pennsylvania State University | Mike Weaver, Pennsylvania State University

In order to facilitate a return to campus post-COVID, Penn State leveraged technology and cross-functional teams to successfully plan and implement safe social distancing measures across various rooms types using a decentralized management model.
Abstract: With thirty-three million square feet of space across twenty-three campuses, facility management is a complex process at Pennsylvania State University. In order to facilitate a return to campus post-COVID, Penn State leveraged technology and cross-functional teams to successfully plan and implement safe social distancing measures across various rooms types using a decentralized management model. Come learn from the successes and failures of a state-wide, multi-campus integrated planning and implementation effort to ensure the health and safety of the Penn State community.

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Webinar Recordings

Published
August 26, 2020

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The Impact of COVID-19 on Construction on Campus

By: Catherine Walsh, Associate Vice President, Facilities Division, Northeastern University | David L. Damon, Principal and Higher Education Practice Leader, Perkins and Will | Maureen Kirkpatrick, Vice President/Operations Manager, Turner Construction Company | Hosted by: Niusha Arndt, Project Designer, Perkins and Will, BSA/SCUP College + University Roundtable | Donna Denio Client Service Representative, Campbell-McCabe, Co-Chair, BSA/SCUP College + University Roundtable

This webinar will focus on how higher education campus construction is impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and its positive and negative implications on construction sites on the MIT and Northeastern University campuses. Panelists will share case studies of how on-campus construction has changed, the new supply chains, and staff management consideration.

This is part of the series “Less Talk, More Action: Tactical Topics to Return to Campus.”

Abstract: This webinar will focus on how higher education campus construction is impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and its positive and negative implications on construction sites on the MIT and Northeastern University campuses. Panelists will share case studies of how on-campus construction has changed, the new supply chains, and staff management consideration. They will review construction opportunities due to the pandemic, and how to plan for modifying existing facilities to respond to evolving campus needs.

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Webinar Recordings

Published
June 15, 2020

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Back to School Through the Lens of ASHRAE

By: Hosts: Niusha Arndt, Designer, Perkins + Will, BSA/SCUP College + University Roundtable; Patrick Murphy, Associate Principal and Director of Sustainable Design, Vanderweil Engineers, BSA/SCUP College + University Roundtable | Moderator: Nancy May, Formerly Vice President, Facility & Operations Management, Northeastern University | Panelists: Susanna M. Baker, Director of Facilities & Space Planning, MIT Sloan School of Management; Bill Bahnfleth, Leader of ASHRAE’s Epidemic Task Force, Former President of ASHRAE (worldwide), Professor of Architectural Engineering at Penn State University

Panelists Susanna M. Baker, MIT Sloan School of Management, and Bill Bahnfleth, ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers) and Penn State University, discussed requirements for a typical campus upgrade and reviewed ASHRAE recommendations on improving campus safety in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. They also addressed some of the unique challenges for an urban campus response to maintaining campus safety.
Abstract: This is the third in a series of webinars, “Less Talk, More Action: Tactical Topics to Return to Campus,” jointly sponsored by SCUP’s North Atlantic Region, BSA, and their BSA/SCUP College + University Roundtable focused on the impact of COVID-19 on campuses.

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Webinar Recordings

Published
June 10, 2020

Coffee Chat: COVID-19 Physical Distancing in Classrooms

By: Pamela Garbini, Penn State, Assistant Director for Space Management, Planning Design & Properties | Tom Kase, Penn State, Classroom Architect, Planning Design & Properties

We are all trying to figure out how to safely bring students back to classrooms for the fall semester. A discussion about 6-foot physical distancing layout modifications in existing classrooms, reduced occupancy yields when dealing with fixed seating versus movable seating, creating instructor zones, creating alternate instruction spaces.
Abstract: We are all trying to figure out how to safely bring students back to classrooms for the fall semester. A discussion about 6-foot physical distancing layout modifications in existing classrooms, reduced occupancy yields when dealing with fixed seating versus movable seating, creating instructor zones, creating alternate instruction spaces.

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Planning for Higher Education Journal

Published
October 1, 2019

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Phased Transformations of Academic Buildings

Can’t vacate the facility? Renovation in stages can be planned efficiently.

By: Roger N. Goldstein, Amanda L. Sanders, Bernard J. Dooley

When you’re renovating a campus building, you’re contending with dust, noise, vibration, the risk of budget overruns, relocating occupants, extended timelines, and more. Following best practices of experienced planners can help you to mitigate the most common challenges.

From Volume 48 Number 1 | October–December 2019

Abstract: As mid-20th-century buildings reach the end of their service life, academic institutions are confronted by the challenge of renovating them while they remain partially occupied. When appropriate swing space is unavailable, or when there is no potential for vacating a building completely to allow renovation to occur more efficiently, a phased approach becomes necessary. The consequences of committing to phased renovation, however, are not only logistical, but also financial, programmatic, and technical. Through analysis of phased renovation projects across multiple building types, one can extract best practices for planning, design, and construction to mitigate many of the most common challenges.

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Conference Presentations

Published
July 14, 2019

2019 Annual Conference | July 2019

A Survival Guide to Planning and Executing Phased Renovations

By: Laura A. Cruickshank, Roger N. Goldstein, Sarah Stanton

Abstract: Renovating campus buildings that are partially occupied is a frequent challenge. Planning and executing an efficient phased renovation optimizes resource use and minimizes disruption. This presentation will focus on lessons learned in three case studies of phased renovations, comprising mid-20th century science and humanities buildings as well as student housing. You will learn about best practices from projects across multiple building types as well as examine planning methodologies, design processes, and technical challenges for broader applicability.

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Conference Presentations

Published
July 14, 2019

2019 Annual Conference | July 2019

Putting the Green in Infrastructure

An Urban Campus's High-Performance Landscape

By: Jennifer Johnson,Eric Kramer,Laura Tenny

Abstract: Green infrastructure uses the landscape to manage stormwater. This session will explore the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT) successful pilot green infrastructure project. We'll review the characteristics and benefits of green infrastructure in general, along with the accelerated design and construction process for this project in particular. We'll also share measurable results from the green infrastructure, and how the project has impacted the campus.

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