Learning Resources

Abstract: Higher education must be observant to remain relevant. Institutional leadership and faculty can help close the workforce capacity gap by making meaningful connections with prospective students, the workforce, and industry partners. Metropolitan Community College (MCC) is changing their pipeline to increase workforce capacity by engaging nontraditional students in addition to re-evaluating academic and physical availability on their campus. In this session, you'll learn how you can enhance awareness of untapped populations to meet industry goals, evaluate opportunities to improve growth outcomes, and grow industry sponsorship investment through academic and equipment planning at your institution.

Abstract: Societal challenges and opportunities no longer fit in departments. Future success requires business researchers, educators, and students to interconnect across the entire campus and beyond. In this session, we will explore how to plan a campus ecosystem that connects business with people, ideas, and resources to drive a new research and education model. You will learn key strategies and find opportunities—encompassing planning, programming, design process, and lessons learned from building use—to advance your institution's mission and build a framework to implement your initiatives.

Abstract: Higher education building projects include complex programs, multiple stakeholders, and ambitious expectations that can make the projects go over budget, requiring re-design. We will share how we used transparent predictive cost analytics before and during the programming phase to help key stakeholders prioritize wants and needs, allowing for a successful design-to-budget project. You will learn how to implement a predictive approach that minimizes costly re-design due to budget overruns.

Abstract: As engines of local economies, urban universities often nurture innovation ecosystems beyond campus boundaries, like Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT) Kendall Square Initiative. We will focus on this vibrant, campus-edge, partnership-driven innovation ecosystem. We'll cover laboratory facilities that combine academic strengths and private partner needs while examining the architectural challenges of urban research buildings. You will learn about the complexities of mixing commercial research buildings, student housing, residential apartments, and active retail street-level spaces to meet the physical and cultural demands of diverse clientele.

Abstract: FLEXSpace—The Flexible Learning Environments eXchange—and the Learning Space Rating System (LSRS) are tools that can help you plan, design, assess, and improve learning spaces on your campus. In this session, you will learn about the newly released FLEXspace 2.0 along with the LSRS. We'll cover the features and benefits of both tools and how they can be incorporated into the planning process. Come learn how to use these tools to inform designs and support end users from planning through post occupancy.

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: On the average campus, office space accounts for more square footage than classrooms, instructional and research labs combined. Accordingly, its design and utilization can have significant campus impact. This panel discussion addresses the challenges that institutions face when rethinking their approach to workplace design. We will provide guidance on planning, programming, and design strategies to align workplaces with educational mission, respond to fiscal pressures, and compete for talent.

Abstract: As the country’s largest and most diverse four-year public university system, what happens at the California State University (CSU) reverberates nationwide. Each year, the CSU awards more than 125,000 degrees and one in every 20 Americans holding a college degree is a graduate of a CSU campus. Graduation Initiative 2025 is a university-wide initiative to ensure that all students have the opportunity to be successful and graduate according to their personal goals, positively impacting students’ and their family’s future and producing additional graduates to power the workforce for California and the nation. In this special session, the CSU Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs will address the challenges and opportunities facing the 23-campus system’s efforts to expand authentic access to opportunity for students from all backgrounds and circumstances, eliminate equity gaps and ensure student success.

Abstract: Access to appropriate lactation space is essential for new mothers to participate fully in work and study. Campus planners are positioned to introduce this topic at the beginning stages of new building design or facility renovation. The University of Pennsylvania and SCUP collaborated in a nationwide study to explore lactation policy and facilities in US colleges and universities. We will share results from the study, including user needs along with requirements for evidence-based lactation space design.

Abstract: A sharp, perhaps permanent contraction in the pool of college-aged students has become inescapable. Nearly all institutions could confront wrenching losses in competitiveness, revenue, or both. Yet despite advance warning, few institutions understand what they must do now to remain viable. We will go over two sets of tools that are critical for preparing for the upcoming demographic changes: 1) conducting analyses of institutional vulnerability; and 2) modeling what-if scenarios to shape strategy.