Conference Presentations

Portland State University's (PSU) integrated planning process involved multiple departments, coalesced institutional and strategic goals, bolstered educational and industry ties, and focused on diversity to dismantle barriers within STEM disciplines. PSU pioneered a planning and design process for its new science building that amplified underrepresented voices to diversify the STEM workforce, dramatically shifting design outcomes and student pathways. This session will address how institutions can prioritize broad engagement in planning, and how foregrounding input from underrepresented groups can alter preconceptions and reveal the challenges that exist in institutional operational norms that inhibit student success.

Learning Outcomes:

1. Describe a process for engaging a diverse student cohort at the earliest stages of planning and design that accounts for an adjusted project timeline and allows planners to navigate potentially unforeseen challenges.
2. Translate an institutional goal for equity into concrete steps that integrates students, staff, faculty, and administration in a planning process that is committed to changing outcomes.
3. Identify barriers for students of minority backgrounds in traditionally white and male-dominated STEM fields such as STEM and acquire strategies for addressing them.
4. Interrupt preconceptions about the architectural process and the nature of a science learning environment to better serve a more diverse student population, and ultimately a more diverse workforce.

Presenters:

Jason Franklin, AVP for Planning, Construction and Real Estate, Portland State University
Athena Rilatos, Architectural Designer, Portland State University
Todd Rosenstiel, Dean, Portland State University
Amy Running, Associate Principal, Bora Architects

Delivered 07/23/2024.

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