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About: Learning By Design > The Judges
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After poring over more than 120 school and university design projects, five distinguished judges whittled their way down to an elite group of projects that received 2006 Learning By Design honors. The panel of judges was chaired by Kelley Carey, president of Associated Planning & Research in Hilton Head, S.C. The other judges were: Pam Loeffelman, AIA, a principal at Perkins Eastman Architects PC in Stamford, Conn.; Judy Marks, associate director of the National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities in Washington, D.C.; Sean O’Donnell, AIA, senior associate for Ehrenkrantz Eckstut & Kuhn Architects in Washington, D.C.; and Sarah Woodhead, AIA, director of design and construction for the Arlington (Va.) Public Schools.
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Judges:
Judy Marks, Kelley Carey, Sean O'Donnell, Pam Loeffelman, and Sarah Woodhead
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Sustainable and flexible design projects that truly support the needs of students, teachers, and the community dominated the winners’ circle this year, judges noted. Given this overarching theme among award recipients, other specific trends included:
- A nationwide focus on career and technology education; four of the 2006 Learning By Design award recipients are such schools. This points to the growing importance of having a well-trained workforce, said Woodhead.
- Curved corridors, flexible common areas, and sustainable outdoor spaces as learning environments. Loeffelman noted a more efficient “net-to-gross” ratio among this year’s design projects when measuring actual facility usage.
- Exposed ceiling ducts and decking throughout the facilities. O’Donnell said this cost-effective trend also contributes to the look and feel of modern educational facility design.
- Effective use of natural light, environmentally friendly designs, and site plans that account for safety also remained prevalent trends among exemplary school and university design projects.
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Judges encourage architectural firms that entered unbuilt design projects and did not receive an award to resubmit those projects after completion. Marks noted that several of this year’s unbuilt project submissions were exemplary, but did not include enough detail about the resulting learning environments. Include as much information as possible regarding how the facility will support the needs of students, teachers, and the community.
Also, high-quality photos that include informational captions and students give judges a more accurate look at scale, site plan execution, and practical use of the educational facility.
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Judges encourage architectural firms that entered unbuilt design projects and did not receive an award to resubmit those projects after completion. Marks noted that several of this year’s unbuilt project submissions were exemplary, but did not include enough detail about the resulting learning environments. Include as much information as possible regarding how the facility will support the needs of students, teachers, and the community.
Also, high-quality photos that include informational captions and students give judges a more accurate look at scale, site plan execution, and practical use of the educational facility. |
Copyright 2006 © NSBA
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