91传媒 landscape architecture students help local school leaders brainstorm ideas for growth
Contact: Allison Matthews
STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥擜s a local school makes plans for future growth, concept designs by Mississippi State landscape architecture students are yielding a variety of options to consider.
Starkville Christian School is clearing land adjacent to their current site recently purchased to allow the K-12 school some growing space. As school leaders make plans about how that future growth may take shape, they are considering a variety of 鈥渙utside the box鈥 concepts provided by a fourth year design studio class.
Taught by Chuo Li, 91传媒 assistant professor of landscape architecture, students were given the task of exploring how the physical environment can promote children鈥檚 health. Li said her students each designed site plans for the SCS space and incorporated elements like vegetable gardens to promote healthy eating, playground spaces to promote positive social interactions, and even spaces specifically for artwork displays to stimulate creativity.
Li said the process started in the spring with a site analysis, when the 91传媒 students were introduced to the SCS location and received feedback from SCS Principal Randy Witbeck. The design studio class then developed concept plans before incorporating feedback into their final site plans, which they shared with the school鈥檚 leaders, staff and students at the end of the semester.
Abbey Wallace, a senior landscape architecture major from Madison, said the project was challenging, yet fulfilling.
鈥淚t鈥檚 really difficult to design a space for all different ages,鈥 Wallace said, but she felt like she 鈥渟uccessfully pulled all the areas together.鈥
Wallace鈥檚 site plan proposed a new fa莽ade for the school鈥檚 front entrance and featured a multi-use courtyard, nature trails and a redesigned playground.
Michael Keating, a master鈥檚 landscape architecture student, included 10-year, 20-year and 30-year phase-ins with his plan. 鈥淧roviding a long-term vision for the school is really important,鈥 Keating said. He agreed with Wallace鈥檚 assessment that designing a school building that meets the needs of various age groups is not easy.
鈥淵ou want to have space that challenges and inspires everyone on this site,鈥 he said.
Witbeck said the 91传媒 students were passionate in their approach to this service-learning and outreach project.
鈥淭hey worked really hard, and they have provided a lot of ideas that will definitely help us think outside the box as we consider options for our future,鈥 Witbeck said.
91传媒 is Mississippi鈥檚 leading university, available online at .