Learning Resources

Abstract: Traditional, siloed faculty offices are no longer the best option for serving student and staff needs. Open-concept faculty neighborhoods benefit staff by creating a collaborative working environment, and they benefit students by providing space for them to speak openly with professors. This session will demonstrate how innovative faculty neighborhoods increase collaboration and dialogue, supporting the working and learning experience for faculty, students, and the whole institution. We'll demonstrate how you can get the most out of your campus working environments by implementing creative layouts that are designed to boost collaboration and connection while retaining space for personal reflection and rejuvenation.

Abstract: No two individuals are 'wired' to process information or stimuli in their environment in the same way, yet the design of campus environments often focuses on the 'norm'. Meeting diverse needs on a spectrum of neurodiversity is an emerging concern for educational planning and design. We'll explore how physical environments can impact the educational experience by planning for neurodiversity and identify planning considerations that support equitable, inclusive campus environments to meet diverse social, emotional, and cognitive needs. This session aims to increase awareness, fluency, and sensitivity to assist planning efforts addressing neurodiversity that positively impact the built environment and the holistic experience and wellbeing of the campus community.

Abstract: Designing a forward-thinking research building without identified occupants is a bold undertaking. Through an integrated planning and data-driven process, North Carolina State University (NCSU) designed a flexible academic research building, inspiring cross-functional collaboration which has led to increased industry partnerships and innovation. This session will highlight how a collaborative team enabled decision-making throughout the design process to create a future-proofed, energizing hub for academic research. Come learn how to leverage benchmarking, analytics, and an integrated planning process to design successful and innovative buildings on your campus.

Abstract: Institutions can move beyond design project engagement activities by actively collaborating with students to explore issues of belonging and mattering to make more meaningful design choices. This session will delve into research created with students from racial minorities at North Carolina State University's (NCSU) D. H. Jr. Hill Library, which explores their perceptions and offers their visions for more just and equitable spaces. Along with learning how to connect students' sense of belonging and mattering to campus design through meaningful collaboration, you'll leave this session with a replicable research model to use with students to envision more inclusive learning environments.

Abstract: Academic program misalignment can have serious consequences for institutions, such as a lack of support for competing priorities and unwieldy maintenance of administrative oversight. Students may also obtain degrees that are difficult to explain or find themselves caught in programs that require teach-outs to complete a discontinued course of study. This session will cover how planners can strategically invest institutional resources in academic program proposals to ensure programs are student centered, institutionally aligned, and collaborative. Join us to discover how you can effectively analyze and align programs, engage stakeholders, and manage expectations for academic programs at your institution.

Abstract: Campus facility design is a complex process that involves many sources of opinion and influence. Educational environments must enhance evolving pedagogies, support learning, administrative, and social functions, and accommodate ever-changing institutional needs. The systematic use of standardized evaluation tools for assessment of higher education facilities provides comprehensive insight into occupant experience from diverse, unique perspectives for informed and integrated planning decisions. In this session, we'll share practical strategies for conducting occupant evaluations across all types of facilities, as well as occupant outcome findings and the resulting planning decisions.

Abstract: Aging campus buildings can have a negative impact on student retention and faculty ability to conduct modern research. At the same time, the effects of climate change add urgency to the challenge of managing these outdated campus facilities. We'll share insights from a nine-building comprehensive facility renewal planning effort to maintain the vitality of aging teaching and research facilities while addressing the physical and programmatic needs of contemporary education. This case study will provide a methodology for developing an actionable facility renewal and program enhancement plan that seamlessly incorporates into an existing sustainability and high-performance building framework.

Abstract: Athletic and recreation facilities occupy a significant campus footprint but oftentimes master planning doesn't integrate these spaces holistically into the campus. Recreation and wellness are critical components of student life on campus, and proactive planning can create a seamless experience on game days and for everyday athletics. In this session, three universities will share their distinct approaches to how campus planning and sports planning intersect in the academic realm. We'll provide specifics associated with integrated sports master planning and explain how outcomes can direct campus growth in the long term.

Abstract: Institutions are struggling to increase retention and success for students from underrepresented and marginalized backgrounds. Michigan State University's (MSU) Multicultural Center offers safe spaces for education, healing, community, and building solidarity with one other. From advocacy to implementation, the student-driven process behind multicultural center was authentic and inclusive, resulting in a multi-functional facility that serves a highly diverse set of cultural activities and promotes a sense of belonging and wellbeing. Involving students at the highest levels of project decision-making during planning and the design process can reinforce an institution's mission around education and commitment to creating authentic, inclusive campus environments.

Abstract: In a time of racial segregation and limited opportunity, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) became pillars of the African American community, fostering academic excellence and a sense of cultural identity. HBCU leaders will discuss their institutions' significant and dynamic journeys over the years, and how they have evolved through different historical contexts and social changes. Join us to hear critical stories of how HBCUs have leveraged physical, academic, financial, and operational strategies to enhance and strengthen their missions, from their early years, through the pandemic, and today.