This developmental study explores the process and outcomes of creating an active learning classroom within a higher education setting. To support student success, institutions have increasingly redesigned their learning spaces to promote active learning. Early initiatives often aimed to facilitate collaborative learning and reduce reliance on…

With the advent of the knowledge era, academia has begun to play new roles in society. As a result, requirements for the design of universities may also change. Milieus of lively and flourishing urban life that foster encounters and unforeseen collaborations within academia -- as well as between academia and society at large -- have been called…

Many school and college campuses are like small cities--they offer a little bit of everything. Although academic buildings and residence halls account for a sizable percentage of the facilities on a campus, the academic community on a school campus can include other buildings with specialized design and performance needs: laboratories,…

The Seaford School District, Seaford, Delaware, determined that a component of their "reinvention" of Seaford High School would be the creation of a New Tech Academy, affiliated with the New Tech Network and housed in an addition to that building. The New Tech Network, headquartered in Napa, California, is a rapidly growing association…

When it comes to building student housing, the stakes for universities and colleges have never been higher. From competing for prospective students and environmental bragging rights to contesting for space on the typical campus, institutions face a fundamentally different landscape than they did when housing previous generations of students. A…

The May/June 2009 issue of "Facilities Manager" introduced APPA readers to the Whole Building Design Guide (WBDG)--today's most comprehensive Internet-based depository of resources contributing to a systems approach for everything of a building nature. The emphasis in that article was on Operations and Maintenance (O&M) issues and procedures. In…

In 2009 the Secretary General of Universities (SGU) of the Spanish Ministry of Education launched a new programme to foster the modernisation and internationalisation of Spanish university campuses. This initiative focused on teaching, research and aspects of technology transfer, but also developing the campus into an integral social model which…

For the last few decades, improving learning space has generally meant renovations to existing space, because raising new buildings has simply not been within most public or private institutions' budgetary capacity. But sometimes, the opportunity to oversee the development of a new building occurs. The dean who is given such an important project…

In these troubled economic times, members of college and university communities must provide effective learning environments to support ever-changing curricula while reducing budgets. At the same time, a growing body of literature points to shifting needs of the variously named digital natives, Millennials or the Net Generation. This article…

The guide allows users to adapt and implement suggested O&M (operating and maintaining) strategies to address specific energy efficiency goals. It recognizes and expands on existing tools and resources that are widely used throughout the high-performance school industry. The guide is organized into the following sections: (1) Chapter 1:…

Conceptions of the learning process have varied over time, from seeing learners as "blank slates" for a teacher to fill to the view that, unless a learner is engaged in actively constructing knowledge, little will be learned or retained. As research on the physiological aspects of learning has revealed, active engagement with the learning…

Doors serve a variety of needs and purposes in schools: (1) Exterior doors provide building security and protection from the elements; and (2) Interior doors control the movement of people among school spaces, help control noise and air flow, and act as flame and smoke barriers during a fire. In a lockdown, they serve as safety barriers. From a…

Seattle Public Schools recently underwent a revolutionary change in their educational specifying process. Led by facilities Executive Director John Vacchiery and Director Nan Stavnshoj, the district now requires that all new or remodeled middle and high school projects funded by the district follow a student centered dynamic, rather than a…

Early childhood centers have become a common and necessary part of millions of Americans' lives. More women in the workforce, longer workweeks, and educational research supporting the importance of early education have all contributed to the rise of early childhood centers throughout the United States. Today, more than 30 percent of children under…

Public education is one of the central tasks of a democratic society, and the buildings that house this important task not only shape the way one teaches, but provide icons and symbols for the values people hold common as a society. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this context has placed school buildings squarely in a position of debate and innovation…