K-12 - DLR Group2016 was a great year. We added a dedicated K-12 Studio in Houston led by a group of passionate, innovative thinkers. DLR Group also added K-12 expertise in Washington,

K-12elevations

2016 Review

2016 was a great year. We added a dedicated K-12 Studio in Houston led by a group of passionate, innovative thinkers. DLR Group also added K-12 expertise in Washington, D.C., on the West Coast, and closed the year with the acquisition Westlake Reed Leskosky (WRL). This enhances our presence in Phoenix and Washington, D.C., and adds Studios in Cleveland, Charlotte, and New York. The K-12 Studio invested extensively in R&D during the year. Our practice continues to embrace a research-based and results-oriented approach. More and more clients are asking for research based design and we are committed to leading the industry. We are collaborating with Lennie Scott-Webber, Owner and Principal at INSYNC: Education and formerly the Director of Educational Environments at Steelcase, to help drive our K-12 research along with DLR Group Research & Development Leader Joe MacDonald.

As we look to the future, I believe a coming trend is the blurring of lines between pre- and post-secondary educational delivery. As we learn more about how children learn, and when they are ready to learn, I believe a close collaboration across the entire educational spectrum – Early Childhood to the University Campus – offers the potential to engage students in learning when and where they can most benefit. Design and design thinking are poised to lead and discover new methods and modalities of educational delivery. I have already used too many words. On the following pages you will find the best thinking of our K-12 experts and a sampling of our best educational designs from the past 12 months. To all our clients, partners, and friends, on behalf of the DLR Group K-12 Studio, thank you for your trust in 2016 and your partnership in 2017.

- Jim French, FAIA Global K-12 Education Leader

Welcome

Chris Gibbs, AIA Minneapolis | Principal

Todd Ferking, AIA Seattle | Principal

Jason Lembke, AIA, LEED AP Chicago | Principal

Kevin Greischar, AIA Kansas City | Principal

Pam Loeffelman, FAIA, LEED AP Denver | Principal

Brett Hobza, AIA, LEED AP Los Angeles | Principal

Lisa Johnson, AIA, LEED AP Seattle | Principal

Vanessa Schutte, AIA, LEED AP BD+C Omaha | Principal

Sarah Woodhead, AIA, NCARB Washington D.C. | Principal

Taryn Kinney, AIA, LEED AP Houston | Principal

K-12 Leadership

Insights in Education

The PUSH and PULLof Culture, Education,and EconomyThe transformation of teaching and learning to a balanced curriculum of both theoretical and applied learning is fostering everything.

In multiple school districts across the country of all sizes, shapes, and settings, a cultural transformation is occurring. It’s the pull of an ever changing workforce economy and a push from students who want to be engaged and to create their own pathways for advancement.

I see three unique benefits to this student-centric approach to education:

byPamela Loeffelman, FAIA

The transformation of teaching and learning to a balanced curriculum of both theoretical and applied learning is fostering everything from the maker movement to Career and Technical Education (CTE) to STEM to STEAM. CTE specifically is growing both in popularity and in its ability to engage and connect students to the real world.

CTE curriculum is also redefining our design approach, shifting the focus to how space can enable these increasingly diverse and constantly changing programs rather than the other way around. This shift requires a robust co-design process that empowers teachers, students, school leaders, designers, and others to co-create transformational learning spaces. These are flexible, adaptive, personalized, learner-centered spaces. The aim is to collectively provide the places, spaces, and pathways for students to engage in relevant learning activities.

I regularly ask ‘what if’ questions to get clients, students, educators, and administrators to understand the possibilities of their future learning environments and programs.

1) Learning how to work with others collaboratively as an invaluable skill in any workplace.

2) Sharing research and knowledge to increase the return with collective contributions.

3) Hands-on activities through simulation labs and work study experiences that make learning more relevant.

What if CTE is more than just a bridge between high school and college and career prep? What if it could be the catalyst that shifts student engagement and outcomes to a different level? What if we can embed learning spaces in high schools and innovation centers that give every student professional career and mentorship opportunities? This could foster enriched business partnerships that benefit districts, students, and the local economy by effectively preparing a local workforce.

What if CTE is no longer “Your Mama’s Shop Class” but rather the stimulus that acknowledges place matters, place enables, and which puts people, pedagogy, and place together?

My hope is when I look back 20 years from now these ‘what if’ questions will have led to a forward-thinking, engaging educational model that forever changed the way students learn.

Based in Denver, Pam Loeffelman, FAIA, leads the K-12 Studio for DLR Group in the Southwest.

In 1998, when Don Tapscott published “Growing Up Digital” the definition of the classroom of the future was not fully clear. Nobody definitively predicted the full spectrum of changes in curriculum, culture, and technology we are experiencing today.

DESIGN

Bismarck Public Schools was experiencing unprecedented student enrollment growth as a result of the oil boom that began to flourish in the early 2000s. In response, DLR Group fast-tracked the comprehensive design of the new 1,600-student Legacy High School to alleviate overcrowding and accommodate new students to the community. The highly collaborative school is organized around small learning communities and features flexible instructional spaces and open labs for hands-on learning.

Legacy High School

2016

Bismarck, N.D.

Design ReimaginedAn environment that isstudent-centered, transparent and active.

Incubator spaces are the newest innovation within K-12 design. Global K-12 Education Leader Jim French outlines how DLR Group uses incubators to design more personalized learning environments for today’s students. Click below to watch his video.

byJim French, FAIA

We Need Incubators for EducationDesigning more personalized learning environments for today’s students.

Insights in Education

LINK, GATHER, and LEARN21st Century modernization

Kodiak High School serves as the sole high school for the Kodiak Island community. The four-story stacked building solution minimizes the impact on a tight site; allows an open, connected space plan; and maximizes ocean views. This 21st century design meets the unique needs of the local community and students. Each year many graduating students remain on Kodiak Island and seek careers in the industries of commercial fishing, healthcare, aerospace, and the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard.

Kodiak High School

DESIGN2016

Kodiak Island, Alaska

Insights in Education

Designing for Play in Learning EnvironmentsPositioning play at the center of design enhances students’ abilities to retain information, setting the stage for future success.

Since it appears that students retain the most information from their formative memories of play, shouldn’t our educational spaces be designed to encourage play to maximize our children’s learning potential?Anyone who has spent any amount of time with children knows they sometimes have difficulty sitting still. Their tactile natures mean they need to move, touch, feel, see, smell, hear, even taste the world around them; for this reason, children tend to retain information better when play is involved. We must, therefore, consider how our designs can position play at the center of curriculum, allowing students to learn and create in a place that speaks their language.Here are a few elements to consider when designing for play:

Furniture selection is important for encouraging play and learning, not only in the classroom, but throughout an entire facility. Furniture cubes, for example, may serve as platforms, seats, or tables depending on the student’s imagination. Furniture that is flexible, adaptable, and scalable to children of varying ages is an important aspect of designing spaces that accommodate play.

A simple way to encourage everyday play is to focus on spaces where students travel. Corridors offer alternative interactive places for learning beyond the traditional classroom. A wide, undulating corridor, for example, can be more than a means of access from place to place, instead acting as a gathering space for engaging indoor activities such as reading or games.

Materials with a variety of colors, patterns, and textures invite students to interact with different surfaces. Distinguishing the mounting height of interactive display areas, such as marker boards, tack boards, and smart boards at varying heights for children ensures their ability to interact with these displays.

Window and door placement matters greatly in designing for play. Window sills placed at small children’s eye levels allows them to see beyond the classroom to the outdoors (an experience proven to improve overall academic performance), and look around classrooms into corridors or multi-purpose rooms. Doors with direct access to indoor and outdoor play areas also encourage children to spend more time in these spaces.From an early age, play is critical to a child’s development and learning. As designers, we have the ability to create spaces that elevate play, allowing children to explore, experiment, and better understand the world around them.

Katie Ramsbottom is an architect in the Omaha K-12 Studio.

A recent discussion on DLR Group’s Intranet revolved around the question, “What is your earliest memory of kindergarten?” Some people had memories of teachers or friends; however, the majority of respondents recalled vivid memories of play: from playing tag on the playground to molding objects with Play-Doh and creating masterpieces with crayons.

byKatie Ramsbottom, AIA, LEED AP BD+C

Corridor

Windows & Doors

Furniture

Materials/Interactive Displays

Visual ConnectionsLearning labs and specialized spaces give students a reason to become excited about learning.

DLR Group partnered with GraceHebert Architects to design the new 250,000 SF Lee High School. The concept behind the design is connectivity - primarily visual connections to get students excited about learning and the activities that are happening within the facility. The design also supports real-life experiences, allowing students to apply what they learn in a classroom in a specialized hands-on laboratory.

Lee High School

DESIGN2016

East Baton Rouge, LA

Insights in Education

A passionate case for the introduction of art as a fifth element to create STEAM.

The Fifth Elementof STEM

The inter-dependence of STEM curricular areas provides an extraordinarily solid foundation that almost any other area of study could be layered on top of to develop new and relatable educational outcomes. We have for years seen a passionate case for the introduction of art as a fifth element to create STEAM.

This right-brain skill set interwoven with the traditionally left-brain focused STEM works to provide an effective and needed balance. The common assumption that the added “A” denotes drawing, painting, sculpting, music, and theater provides a limiting factor that should be challenged. We should also look at other liberal arts and social science topics as candidates for building upon the ever-expanding STEM foundation.

I imagine an interesting blend of data collection around specific human behavioral patterns, geographic histories,

STEM education, which is the inter-mingling of somewhat isolated topics; science; technology; engineering; math, is considered by many to be critically important for the development of our future workforce. STEM initiatives have consistently captured the imagination of thousands of students, teachers, administrators, and politicians since it was first trickled into the world of education in the mid 1980’s.

byChris Gibbs, AIA

agricultural traditions, and weather patterns in order to speculate through technology what the future may hold for any particular region of the world. I also envision a psychological study of the empathetic behaviors through social media of individuals and how that may impact the long-term evolution of people living in a variety of socio-economic conditions across the globe.

Each of these examples blends aspects of STEM and subjects that have traditionally not been STEM related. Life is not a silo exercise and the correct development of knowledge in any learner should embrace the inter-disciplinary world we live in and the work we do.

Chris Gibbs is a member of DLR Group’s Innovation Team and leads the K-12 Studio in Minneapolis.

Agua Fria High School | Avondale, Ariz.Blurring the lines between ages and abilities, DLR Group’s design for the new Agua Fria High School will foster authentic learning and curricular exploration, becoming an open source incubator for the art of teaching and learning.

Fairmount Kindergarten Center | Mukilteo, Wash.DLR Group’s design for the new Fairmount Kindergarten Center is an innovative, next generation learning environment for 600 kindergarten students under one roof.

Missouri Innovation Campus | Lee’s Summit, Mo.DLR Group partnered with Gould Evans to design the Missouri Innovation Campus, a high-tech, STEM focused facility that is reshaping the way students experience education.

Next...

Image created by Gould Evans Architects, in conjunction with DLR Group

Energy+Engineering Solutions

Activate Thoughtful Capital InvestmentNow is our opportunity to enhance building performance, improve indoor environmental quality, and increase student comfort.

WATT’S THE POINT? Savings for your school district make an environmental impact. 691 kW annually for Waukegan SD is equivalent to...

greenhouse gas emissions of

1.26 MILLION MILES driven by a

passenger vehicle

carbon sequestered by 13,678 TREE

seedlings grown for 10 yrs

average electricity usage of

78 HOMES for one year

DLR Group believes all K-12 facilities should be sustainably designed, high performance buildings to ensure the prudent investment of public monies. Our focus is to reduce energy use through design and improve building performance, and then incorporate renewable systems to produce energy on site.

In Waukegan, Ill., we were able to access funding for solar rooftop arrays on seven schools. The result is more than 2K solar modules generating 691kW per year. This will have a significant financial impact on the district’s operational costs and free up budget to support educational aspirations.

Solar is not the only opportunity to reduce your operational expenses. DLR Group’s full suite of engineering experts provide design, commissioning, and energy efficiency services for the complete life cycle of your building.

Image created by Gould Evans Architects, in conjunction with DLR Group

A.G. Bell Elementary School Kirkland, Wash.

Polished Apple Award Association for Learning Environments

Washington Chapter

Jordan Middle School Jordan, Minn.

Grand PrizeLearning by Design

Awards

2016@DLR Group

DLR Group celebrated its 50th birthday on April 1, 2016. During the year, each office hosted an open house for local clients, partners, and alumni. Each office also closed for a day of service. In total, DLR Group employee-owners donated more than 6,000 hours to their local communities.

DLR Group expanded its geographic reach in 2016. The firm opened international offices in Dubai and Nairobi, a new office in Houston, and consolidated our Santa Monica and Pasadena locations in a new downtown Los Angeles office.

On September 20, DLR Group CEO Griff Davenport announced the acquisition of Westlake Reed Leskosky. ARCHITECT Magazine’s #1 ranked firm in 2014, and #2 in 2016, WRL brings market leading Performing Arts, Museum, and Healthcare practices and adds depth to the integrated services of DLR Group.

Practicing as DLR Group|Westlake Reed Leskosky in Arizona, Ohio, and the Northeast; as DLR Group|Sorg|Westlake Reed Leskosky in Washington, D.C.; and as DLR Group across the U.S. and around the globe, more than 1,000 design professionals stand ready to provide you with an unmatched depth of integrated design services and focused market expertise.

Connect with Us