Learning Resources

Abstract: For colleges and universities to achieve their goals with extremely limited resources, they must rely on constructive partnerships. This session will focus on building those connections for placemaking on campus, which is a critical aspect of activating a successful innovation ecosystem. Activation does not simply happen because a plaza exists; rather, it requires organizational structure, programming, funding models, and partnership. This session will explore cross-disciplinary planning?internally within the institution and with external partners?as well as provide resources for creating a framework for public space activation.

Abstract: Place matters in a higher education landscape that is becoming increasingly more competitive. In this session, we’ll show how three institutions within the University System of Maryland prioritized, designed, and implemented a flexible and maintainable approach to signage and wayfinding, allowing each campus to make an impactful, branded first impression. Come learn how to translate years of ad hoc wayfinding into a consistent brand that provides a welcoming, inclusive, and connected campus for all.

Abstract: We often think of buildings merely as structures that we design, build, and maintain. Yet in truth, these structures are also places that can make occupants feel a sense of belonging and of 'place' within a community that connects people to one another. Campus buildings that foster a sense of place and community can ignite our imaginations for delivering our institutional missions in new and meaningful ways. Join us in an exploration of how leadership at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville plays a key role in creating these welcoming campus spaces.

Abstract: Strategic planning often involves the development of new or revised policies. Policy communication and operationalization can significantly impact morale and strategic plan buy-in and we must consider it in a well-planned and integrated manner in order to produce effective change. This presentation will focus on lessons learned in policy roll-out, and through sharing your own experiences, you will gain an increased understanding of challenges and opportunities in policy roll-out that can inform strategic planning decisions on your campus.

Abstract: As millennials move into leadership roles in academia, it's time to rethink the faculty workspace. Who truly needs private offices in the information age? With research as king and space at a premium, how can institutions design offices and workspaces that attract and retain the highest caliber faculty? This review of faculty workspace innovations across our region's institutions will challenge conventional thinking about how faculty space should be allocated within departments.

Abstract: Planners are being asked to define programs earlier to facilitate the public-private partnership (P3) selection process for increasingly complex build types. This session will focus on how University of California Merced defined an academic and research science program for an unknown group of scientists to allow for a selection process, the resultant design dilemma faced by the architects, and how the team took on the challenge of modifying the generic laboratories.

Abstract: Fostering conversation and engagement transcends merely providing gathering spaces—it’s about cultivating an ethos of wellness, inclusivity, and sustainability, as modeled by the Mashouf Wellness Center at San Francisco State University. Explore how a single project—in this case the first major ground-up building in 24 years—models wellness, inclusion, and sustainability for other projects, plans, and policies on an evolving campus. We will share approaches to engaging students in an inclusive design process and strategies for designing spaces that encourage discourse and cultivate an ethos of inclusivity and wellness.

Abstract: We are all invited to take the stage in some form in our lives, whether that be in an interview for work, a speech at a wedding, or simply asking a question in a business meeting or classroom setting. We all have ideas, questions or explorations which we hold back from sharing because our brains are hardwired to prioritize acceptance by our peers and avoid rejection and ridicule. Sometimes, this keeps us safe—but more often than not—it keeps us from truly stepping into a life of opportunity.

The first major theme of the presentation is the psychology of fear. What makes so many of our hands shake, our body’s fidget and our minds forget our words once so perfectly rehearsed? It is an evolutionary response, developed eons ago, designed to protect us. Public speaking asks us to do the one thing we are hard-wired not to do – step outside of the tribe and ask to be invited back in. As relatively weak and slow planetary beings, we survived only in community. Public speaking is the most vulnerable and scary thing that we can do. We will explore the role of this response and how it “shows up” for us in our modern-day world and body and four scientifically-proven ways to shift out of fear and into action using both science and story to address the “hack”.

The second major presentation theme is the role of nonverbal communication. Research shows that over 93% of communication is nonverbal, demonstrating that our brains are wired to prioritize nonverbal over verbal communication. But as presenters, we focus on what we say – rather than how we say it. We engage in fun-partner work to learn how our brains are specifically attuned to body language – and the signals that we are unintentionally demonstrating while speaking from a place of fear or anxiety.

The presentation is concluded with a challenge: to invite each audience member to make one commitment to themselves to lean in towards one area of fear in their life, whether that’s practicing a strategy at home or stepping onto the stage to share their message with the world.

Abstract: Critical Race Theory (CRT) is a part of the Portland Community College's (PCC) strategic plan and has been an aspect of its academic planning for some time. Including CRT in the use and design of physical space is new and, in some ways, unknown. Learn from PCC's ongoing exploration of what it means to apply CRT to the built environment. We'll discuss how we're rethinking planning and programming activities to encourage more diverse contributions that result in spaces that support all students.

Abstract: Design standards define what makes a campus unique without limiting creativity. This session highlights the trials and tribulations of defining what should and should not be in the campus standards. We'll discuss how to rethink the processes for creating and implementing campus standards, focusing on the “why” of campus standards while balancing life-cycle costs and ease of operation. We'll also look at how to better implement and communicate the standards, increasing the likelihood that they are incorporated into projects.