Back to School: 10 Ways New Education Facilities Teach Us About Smart Building Design

It's been a rocky run for our nation’s schools over in the past few years. From pandemic-related ruptures in routine to political conflicts, nationwide teacher shortages and unprecedented safety concerns, stress levels are at an all-time high as the student body returns to campuses in earnest this fall. Despite these challenges, schools are now more than ever expected to be wellsprings for mental, physical, emotional and social support. School designers and other experts say that real estate plays a huge role in response to these stressors.

Among some of the top issues related to safety, neurodiversity and changing student body demographics, architecture plays a role in how the top schools are evolving. But it doesn't stop with the most dazzling school designs. The corporate world, as well as the commercial real estate industry as a whole, can take some lessons from schools as employees return to their desks en masse after Labor Day as well: certain principles in education building design are not only helping students but are also shaping the workforce they are heading into.

“K-12 is such an interesting architectural discipline because it really has almost every single aspect of the other practices in it.”

Rachael Dumas, Perkins + Will

“K-12 is such an interesting architectural discipline because it really has almost every single aspect of the other practices in it,” said Rachael Dumas, K-12 knowledge manager and senior associate of architecture firm Perkins + Will. “It's athletics, workspaces, administrative offices, nurses’ rooms, classrooms, labs, makerspaces, libraries, cafeterias and media centers. A lot of these places rent their spaces out for events and serve as a community center as well. It’s almost every type of [commercial] space in one building, so these spaces have to be really thoughtful, well executed and planned in order for them to work for all these different things that they need to be.”

“The primary goal of school design is to kindle the human spirit rather than sequester it. ”

Mark Goodman, Learning by Design magazine

With the goal of developing and designing a facility that is meant to “kindle the human spirit rather than sequester it,” leading education facilities have a lot to teach other buildings as well, explained Mark Goodman, publisher of Learning by Design magazine. “Learning environments are increasingly planned with the intention of promoting personal agency and experimentation, along with a little bit of wonder and surprise to create delight and connection among its inhabitants.”

Inspired by top universities and focusing on independent, private and for-profit schools and other education, childcare and training facilities — which are fueled by the open market rather than public funding — LoopNet spoke with Goodman and Dumas about the top trends for nonpublic pre-K through 12th grade schools in the fall of 2022. The following principles guiding education design, identified by Goodman and Dumas, could be increasingly reflected in the corporate world as well as office workers also, in essence, go "back to school" this fall.

Designing for a variety of functionality is one of the foremost trends in education architecture, Goodman said. “Instead of what used to be referred to as cookie-cutter, ‘cells and bells’ institutional facilities, these newer spaces need to be crafted as a portfolio of adaptable shapes and sizes.”

Neurodiversity is the idea that individuals experience sensory inputs from the world around them in a range of ways. Design can help different areas — be it hallways, cafeterias or classrooms — accommodate for a range of neurodiversity among its users.

Color design is one way to accomplish this, Goodman said. “Some colors are calming; others create excitement.” Together with spatial design such as nooks, colors can promote isolation necessary for quiet reflection, for instance. Wayfinding is increasingly important, too. “Different floor patterns, for instance, tell you not just how to get from point A to point B, but what type of space you’re in: one meant for focusing, or one where you can come together and collaborate.”

Schools are now “hyper-focused on the stress levels and the mental health aspect of their students,” Dumas said. Meaningful connections with staff and other students are crucial, she continued, but it’s also evident that a lot of aspects of school are overly stimulating for kids. “What we're hoping to do with some of our design is to help create spaces to recharge your batteries by yourself or in a small group.”

Schools are becoming “communities of wellbeing,” she said, “and design interventions are looking at ways that the surrounding built environment impact all aspects of health and development: physical, mental, emotional and social.”

The first step in designing an effective space is understanding who will be using it, and stakeholders in the design of education facilities are dedicating more resources to just that.

“The architecture firms that are on the forefront are applying evidence-based research to their designs,” Goodman explained. “And so are thought leaders in the field, such as The Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) and the Society for College and University Planners (SCUP)." Texas-based architecture firm PBK’s Executive Chairman Dan Boggio, for instance, “is working with Google and other stakeholders to reimagine the ‘school of the future,’” Goodman explained, in part through the use of scientific studies.

Research pointed to in that initiative for one shows “strong evidence” that alterations to sensory elements can influence learning, Goodman noted. “Daylight, increased airflow and noise reduction are all huge issues, and designers are working these factors into their planning processes. One thing the pandemic showed us unequivocally is that kids had comparatively higher test scores when they had been getting taught the same subject in an outdoor environment.”

It’s also important to understand who is using the space, and how that’s changing. To create the best possible space for students and staff, Dumas said that Perkins + Will seeks to “understand the geography of the site, the history of the community, the economics and social influence there, and then ask how it can be reflected in the design to make everybody feel welcome.”

That’s because diversity within public and private school schools is increasing, Dumas continued. “A lot more international students have been attending our independent schools here in the states, so schools and designers are spending a lot of time looking at ways to embrace the current and projected demographics and make students of all cultures and backgrounds feel welcome.”

More and more education facilities — especially independent schools — are looking for ways to be culturally responsive, but also to create an inclusive environment. Dumas said that this gets as granular as having focus groups with the local community to weigh in on how locker room design can cater to the entirety of the student body, for example.

These changes reflect how K-12 schools are increasingly following the lead of higher education facilities, which tend to blaze trails for the entirety of the education market, Goodman explained. “Universities have been on the forefront of things like being inclusive and promoting diversity and equitable environments, partially because they are able to implement change quicker than at a local level. For instance, if they have 100 bathrooms on campus and they want to respond to student body demands, they could make changes to represent some sort of gender neutrality in at least some of those.”

It's also important to keep track of how demand is changing. The market for independent schools, for example, increased during the pandemic, Dumas explained. “Independent facilities gave some parents greater opportunities to have their kids in school than public schools did.”

The same goes for early childhood education centers, which Goodman said are going to see increasing demand. “Many states across the country have already mandated free early childhood education in their space for their populace,” he noted, even though many of those early childhood centers aren’t operated by public entities.

“That’s an area where you really see more of the private enterprises stepping in to fill the void. In the rest of the developed world — such as the United Kingdom and Canada, for instance — there are a lot more public-private partnerships. But in the U.S., a lot of for-profit groups are developing early childhood education centers, and a lot [of them] are being sponsored by the corporate world — they are being bolted on to offices and workplaces by employers to provide benefits to employees.”

Cultural values among offices and for-profit learning facilities sometimes even overlap. “We look a lot at our corporate group’s work in interiors, for instance, and ask experts in this discipline how the latest programs and designs can be reflected in the K-12 world,” Dumas explained. “You would be surprised at how much [education facilities] are influenced by [some of the more cutting-edge] corporate buildings, because we want these spaces for kids to reflect where they’re going,” especially since the typical work environment is increasingly evolving during the pandemic and beyond.

With that insight comes the notion that a large number of children won’t actually go into the corporate world — and if they do, there's much more chance now that their jobs might not be based in a traditional office cubicle.

Schools are going to focus more on the lack of workers entering skilled labor and trade vocations in the economy, and the environments and equipment that support them, Goodman noted.

“A lot more people are looking at providing vocational education centers for teaching skills including everything from healthcare needs like nursing to automotive engineering to simulation labs to training for traditional trades such as plumbers and electricians.” There’s a huge lack of facilities that support this type of training, though, which creates a strong real estate opportunity, Goodman continued. “The government is putting more money towards community colleges, but I think you're also going to see more for-profit trade schools, and they’ll probably be much more legitimate and vetted than they’ve been traditionally.”

There’s also a “huge need” for specialized computer engineering skills such as coding and programming, Goodman continued. A lot of schools are responding to all the various types of skillsets being demanded in today’s workforce, Dumas said, and are increasingly forming partnerships with local industrial initiatives to create programs that cater to specific community needs.

This is also happening on a national level, she pointed out. “Cybersecurity, for one, is in increasing demand in the workforce, so we are seeing tools dedicated to cybersecurity, among a range of other STEM programs, within schools at large — not to mention specialized facilities.”

As such, it’s important to incorporate more “spaces or even entire buildings that are dedicated to certain specialized programs,” Dumas continued. “We're looking at getting these spaces prominent on the campus or in the school, putting them adjacent to the central commons. It gets to the more interdisciplinary approach and showcases that the school is really supporting these initiatives.”

These are incredibly high-tech and specialized facilities, she explained. But even in everyday curriculums, more and more technology is being integrated into the learning environment, Goodman said. Increased use of video technology must be available to support extended learning in classrooms, and a range of new types of tech-based tools, such as podcast studios, are being supplied to support demand for a full range of offerings to students.

This all plays into how competitive the education market is becoming, especially for independent and for-profit centers, Dumas said. “In order to maintain enrollment, recruitment and funding, you have to be competitive with the other indie schools around. And the way you do that is with your facilities. What you can offer?”

This extends from daycare for kids aged two to four, all the way to high school and college prep, she said. “Parents want to get the most they can for their kids. While from the outside the academics might seem similar from one place to the next, they’ll likely notice a nice turf field or a tennis court or a dedicated [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] (STEM) building.” So owners, operators and designers have to ask: what is the differentiator?

In terms of real estate, she continued, you must try to take advantage of where you are. Facilities are usually either spread across a sprawling campus or landlocked in an urban environment. Either way, there is always room to add more differentiators, through programs or amenities. To remain competitive, fitting everything in the space available is essential.

With space at a premium considering all a school needs to offer, it’s crucial to make common spaces and large spaces serve a multitude of uses, Dumas said.

“For example, the cafeteria or the media center are huge spaces in the school that often go unused. But it’s really valuable real estate, especially for independent schools, and so it’s really cost-effective to make them as efficient as possible and find ways to use these spaces throughout the day.”

Goodman concurred, noting that every square foot of the building counts and can be leveraged if spaces are adaptable to different types of learners. Creating breakout areas or adding features that connect spaces to the outdoors or accommodate community meetings, lectures or performances “increases the use of that space and gives it a lot more value,” Dumas said. “These spaces can be designed to create this mix of activities and reinforce that notion that we have learning happening everywhere. You give students opportunities to learn in different environments and you make every space valuable.”

It's key to think about the surrounding landscape as well, both experts said, so that every inch of the property is usable — both inside and out.

“Top schools are trying to break down the barriers between indoor and outdoor environments,” Goodman said. Whether it’s through entire walls that can be opened to let the outside in, learning gardens or through one large, transparent space that can be used for a variety of functions, he said, the importance of the outdoors in education is undeniable.

“We've always understood the importance of outdoor learning — it’s not a new concept,” Dumas concurred. “But throughout the pandemic, it’s become even more top of mind.” Many geographies can’t support year-round outdoor learning, though. “You need protection from weather and the technology and amenities you have indoors, so this new term has cropped up: ‘mid-door,' which combines elements of and blurs the line between the indoors and outdoors.”

“Mid-door design” is a “cost-effective way to extend the footprint of your learning environment,” Dumas continued. “You already have outdoor space, so why not use it?” We know it supports neurodiversity, and we know some students really benefit from outdoor learning.”

This can be done not just by bringing students outside, but by bringing elements of nature in, Goodman added. “Not only are more schools trying to incorporate streams and ponds and foliage from outside the building, they are also bringing more views of nature to learning environments. They are also using textures and colors from nature — biophilic design properties — to support the ability for the built environment to improve the human experience.

These design elements are not just about aesthetics, Goodman said. They’re often more sustainable. “Just like in multifamily housing, where there’s a big push now towards mass timber construction, the same goes for education facilities. There's more demand for products that are made sustainably or from managed forestry products. They’re less toxic and more eco-friendly, and they do things like improve indoor air quality, which is key because we all know that you can't learn when there's a high concentration of [carbon dioxide], for instance."

Education facilities are at the forefront of reducing carbon footprints in new construction, Goodman said, and they are incorporating more green roofs and green walls and renewable energy systems as well. Those systems include electric infrastructure for parking and addressing design interventions in landscape architecture, such as with bioswales to reclaim runoff water, for example.

Respect for the natural environment in schools and education buildings is also important because of these facilities’ natural tendency to serve as community centers during natural disasters. “These tend to be places where communities go when there's stress in the environment — they tend to be an intended place of safety.”

But now more than ever, schools also need to think about not just external threats, but internal threats as well, and this is no different than from a corporate environment, unfortunately, Goodman said. Buildings where people gather, such as schools, have to incorporate protected areas — safe spaces behind cinder block walls, away from windows, whether there's an active shooter or a tornado — and they have to address wayfinding elements that help people get there.

“Safety is more top of mind than ever,” Dumas stressed. “We try to do a layered approach to security. We implement the methods of crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED) and we partner with a security firm and a mentor who helped work on the new Sandy Hook school in some cases. It’s a sensitive subject, so we really try to work with the community on what they want.”

“I think designers and owners should understand that spending more money upfront will have improved outcomes down the road,” Goodman concluded. “The inhabitants of the space will do better, and in the case of schools, they’ll learn better." That means they'll contribute to our economy in more effective ways, he said.

Incorporating these principles will help the building’s return on investment, he added. “It's all about facility lifecycle cost.” While these design interventions — ranging from research time to bioswale construction — will add costs, he said, “at the end of the day, they also will lower operating costs and reduce the need for more capital expenditures down the road.”

Furthermore, Dumas concluded, “a lot of these independent schools are extremely competitive. So if you're creating these environments that give people that sense of place and that connection to that place, you then have students, alumni and parents that feel more connected, and that all gives you a competitive advantage and an ongoing recruitment tool.”