Learning Resources

Abstract: This article describes the planning process undertaken at a large, regional comprehensive university to create a space within existing buildings aimed at improving student success in introductory mathematics. It demonstrates the need for integrated planning grounded in academic priorities and student success models.

Abstract: This project examines the evolution of the campuses of Harvard, Yale, Penn, Princeton, and Columbia (collectively referred to in this study as “the Five”) from their founding, through the centuries of their development, and into the future to better understand how academic and other forces gave form to the buildings and grounds and how historical outcomes may inform future growth.

Essays and illustrations present and analyze the vision plans currently under consideration by each university. As these plans are works-in-progress, web links are provided to follow evolution beyond today. A capstone essay titled “Hindsight-Foresight” presents themes linking the past, present, and future of campus development at the Five. The goal of the project–through publication, exhibition, and live presentation/discussion–is to engage campus planners, other design professionals, and architectural historians in further exploring how academic and other forces gave form to the buildings and grounds and how historical outcomes may inform future growth.

Abstract: The eight chapters in this book reflect Richard Dober’s categories of the elements of campus image and design. Within each chapter, each page displays two campus scenes, chosen for thought-provoking comparison—and a brief comment from Dober regarding each.

Richard Dober (1928–2014) was a planning and design advisor to more than 450 colleges, universities, and cultural institutions worldwide, as well as to foundations and government agencies, the World Bank, and UNESCO. He wrote nine books and numerous articles on planning and design and was a founder of the Society for College and University Planning. He led consulting firms since the early 1960s, including most recently, Dober Lidsky Mathey, a firm specializing in campus planning and facility planning services.

Abstract: Sustainable planning is a powerful tool in creating campus facilities that are environmentally, economically, and academically beneficial. As interconnected communities, college campuses provide an excellent model for sustainable intervention strategies. The University of British Columbia and the City University of New York’s Lehman College have both initiated “living building” projects in which engineering systems are designed to behave like thriving organisms. Clarkson University and Wentworth Institute of Technology are both planning student centers designed to tap into excess energy loads. Each of the projects presented in these case studies began with fundamental and smart planning.

Abstract: Modern design and planning are routinely confounded by endemic conditions of deep fragmentation, rampant bureaucratization, and ineffective regulation. Such barriers hamper our ability to succeed in the execution of responsive, responsible, and superb ventures. Added to the mix are cost escalation, outdated technologies, cumbersome techniques, conservative posturing, and the damages of “value” engineering. In such a milieu, it becomes extremely difficult to move from concept through construction with clarity, continuity, and even integrity. Abandoned are often the inspiring, enduring, and delightful qualities that elevate buildings to Architecture. Innovative mindsets and methods must be realized to improve the quality of our built environments, especially considering resources are limited, expectations are soaring, and the need for change is non-negotiable. The author presents a holistic integrative framework for more successful and sustainable environmental design. Included are considerations of agility, fitness, diversity, and delight—aspects that loom large in equations for ingenuity in contemporary times.

Abstract: This companion piece to Campus Heritage is published by SCUP and the Association of University Architects (AUA). It describes the forms, fame, and fate of Old Main, arguably higher education's iconic architecture. These edifices came into being as intentional examples of institutional aspirations and accomplishments, track stories of neglect and renewal, illustrate how some lost through human and natural disasters are now remembered with inspiring campus designs, offer reasons why Old Main and comparable buildings and landscapes deserve a prominent place in comprehensive campus plans, and outline workable methods to achieve that objective. The accompanying graphics, including a visually delightful collection of historic picture post cards, help support the premise that a rounded view of America's collegiate enterprises would be incomplete without understanding and acknowledging the contributions these magnificent masterworks have made to campus development.

Abstract: This monograph offers ideas, insights, and information about campus heritage. It describes and illustrates the contributions campus heritage can make to promote, strengthen, and support institutional goals and objectives and outlines suggested methods of incorporating campus heritage in campus plans, facility plans, and campus design concepts.

Richard Dober (1928–2014) was a planning and design advisor to more than 450 colleges, universities, and cultural institutions worldwide, as well as to foundations and government agencies, the World Bank, and UNESCO. He wrote nine books and numerous articles on planning and design and was a founder of the Society for College and University Planning. He led consulting firms since the early 1960s, including most recently, Dober Lidsky Mathey, a firm specializing in campus planning and facility planning services.