Learning Resources

Abstract: While adopted as a safer near-term solution, outdoor learning environments now seem likely to play a larger role in long-term planning. Schools will now use lessons learned during the pandemic to think more critically about outdoor campus space as an integral component of classroom education and to support student wellbeing. Before the Fall 2020 semester, the Siebel Center for Design at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign partnered with architects and engineers to lead a virtual design charrette focused on extending the life of outdoor campus spaces as learning environments. They also reached out to schools around the country to learn about their recent experiences with these spaces.

Abstract: All colleges and universities have existing building stock that they need to repurpose in order to fit contemporary campus paradigms. Beginning with the project's conception and taking you through its planning, design, and construction, we will outline our investigation, historic research, and analysis of Harvard University's Stirling-designed postmodern museum to inform its transformation into a vibrant academic building housing a variety of programs. In this session, we'll establish a strategic and creative framework for adaptive reuse that you can use to reposition historic and architecturally-significant buildings on your campus.