Ask the Architect: What Are Some Questions College Administrators Should Ask Themselves Before They Start Planning for the Future? #Architect #UniversityArchitect #Ideas #Design #Planning
Posted: August 16, 2019 Filed under: Architecture, Ask the Architect, Campus Planning & Design, Design, Design Thinking, Education, Higher Education - Architecture & Design, University Leave a commentSometimes Architects Design and Sometimes They Ask Questions – Here are 50 Questions for College Administrators to Consider as They Prepare to Plan For Their Future:
- As an institution what are we good at? What are we not so good at?
- Where do we want to go – What is our vision for where we are headed – academically and as a family of diverse individuals?
- How will people of all ages (continue to) learn in the future?
- How will students live, communicate, develop, work, play, share?
- What is the hierarchical structure of education (Provost, students, Student-Life; Administration vs Educators)?
- How can we address “Exclusivity Vs Inclusivity” within education (i.e., white, blue, green collars all working together)?
- What traditions do we want to keep?
- What traditions do we want to eliminate?
- How can we offer more value? How can we offer more by spending less?
- How can we accelerate/decelerate the process – what needs to speed up and what needs to slow down?
- How can we attract more students from in-state and from out-of-state?
- How can we offer more online/hybrid and flip classroom learning? What other educational methods should we explore?
- Who are our clients? Can we identify the student of the future (identity, celebrate, identity)?
- How can we establish a “network” of future business/professional relationships?
- How can we enable a positive transformation of self-awareness and development into early adulthood?
- The “College Experience,” what does this mean? What will it mean in the future?
- How can we become more sustainable? Are we creating a culture that values the planet?
- What are some sustainable strategies that we do well, what are some we need to work on?
- How can we utilize our spaces more efficiently during off-hours?
- How can we provide better connections to the outdoors, nightlife, theater, arts, dining, sports and other events?
- How can we offer more opportunities for community engagement?
- How can we consider the college campus as a living laboratory?
- What is the changing role of the professor/instructors?
- How can we form better interdisciplinary relationships from different colleges to inter-pollinate ideas with one another?
- How can we focus and capitalize on our strengths instead of our weakness?
- Is the “Tiny house” concept viable for student housing?
- Instead of student housing should we follow a “hotel” model?
- What does a student center of the future look like? What is a library of the future look like?
- Can we create a new model for (higher) education so our students never stop learning/growing?
- Is it viable to transform from a singularly “degree” approach to a “tool box” approach where students gain the building blocks they need for that stage of their career?
- What are some public/private partnership opportunities?
- How can we promote health and wellness on our campus?
- How can we create a walkable campus for all our students and guests?
- How can we support our professors and researchers?
- How can we develop programs that engage the residents of the state?
- How can we develop a culture of caring and giving that shares the same positive values?
- How can we capitalize on our close relationship with local parks?
- How can we create a better connection with urban areas – Jersey City, Patterson, New York City, etc.?
- How can we become an “Innovation” district in our state?
- How can we start recruiting students at an earlier age?
- How can we better retain our students?
- How can we better support our students educational goals?
- How can we offer the best college experience for our students?
- How can our built facilities improve lives of the people we serve?
- How can our grounds improve lives of the people we serve?
- How can our people (bus drivers, gardeners, housekeepers, librarians, etc.) improve lives of the people we serve?
- How can we become an institution that others want to emulate?
- Is there a way that we can work with industry/business partners to leverage our role as an academic research facility?
- How can we make learning fun and enjoyable?
- How can we offer more meaning to people’s lives?
We would love to hear from you on what you think about this post. We sincerely appreciate all your comments – and – if you like this post please share it with friends. And feel free to contact us if you would like to discuss ideas for your next project!
Sincerely,
FRANK CUNHA III
I Love My Architect – Facebook