The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is becoming more proactive in its efforts to help school districts address violence.
The Institute is launching a bipartisan effort on Capitol Hill to help state and local school officials access information and funding to design safer and securer schools.
It outlined its commitment to that process in a statement titled “Where We Stand: School Design & Student Safety.” In that statement, AIA says it will lead efforts at the local, state, and federal levels of government to update school design guidelines. It is also supporting collaborative and continuing education to achieve safe school design, and is striving to make such design eligible for federal grants.
AIA is taking a vanguard role in pushing for the establishment of a federal clearinghouse on school design that would become a repository of architectural and design resources that are accessible by educational officials, architects, and other design professionals.
AIA has gotten the ball rolling via its own website for school design safety resources that includes academic research and recent articles on this topic.
“Much of the public debate about school safety has focused on access to firearms and mental health services. Neither approach to solving school violence has progressed much over many years despite all-too-frequent tragedies. Architects can improve school safety through the power of design now,” AIA says in its statement.
“To design and build the new schools we need and to retrofit existing schools requires significant support and resources that go beyond just the architecture, engineering and construction communities. The AIA urgently calls on all policymakers and stakeholders to work with school communities to safeguard students and teachers while keeping schools positive places of learning and growth.”
On October 19, the Institute’s Committee on Architecture for Education is scheduled to host a national multidisciplinary symposium on “The Design of Safe, Secure & Welcoming Learning Environments,” at AIA’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. The event will bring together myriad perspectives from law enforcement, education, mental health experts, security consultants, and architect and design professionals.
The Institute and its members already have started to advise state officials on school design. RTA Architects’ Principal Stuart Coppedge, FAIA, presented to the U.S. Department of Education’s Federal Commissions on School Safety during its Aug. 7 listening session in Cheyenne, Wyo.
On August 1, AIA participated in the two-day Department of Homeland Security 2018 National School Security Roundtable, at which Karina Ruiz, AIA, Principal of BRIC Architecture, and Brian Minnich, AIA, LEED AP, Project Manager with GWWO Architects, explained how an open and positive learning environment can also be designed for safety and security.
Last May, the Institute appointed former AIA President Jeff Potter, FAIA, to Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s roundtable that identifies enhanced safety and security solutions for schools and communities in the state. Earlier this year, AIA Florida began working with that state’s Governor Rick Scott, state legislators, and the Florida Department of Education to develop design standards and best practices for the state’s schools.
Related Stories
Contractors | Oct 4, 2022
Which comes first, the building or the cost estimate?
At the start of a project, don’t forget to establish financial parameters when you’re discussing the design and program. By establishing the costs up front, you can avoid the pitfalls that might derail your project and guarantee its lasting success.
Fire and Life Safety | Oct 4, 2022
Fire safety considerations for cantilevered buildings
Bold cantilevered designs are prevalent today, as developers and architects strive to maximize space, views, and natural light in buildings. Cantilevered structures, however, present a host of challenges for building teams, according to José R. Rivera, PE, Associate Principal and Director of Plumbing and Fire Protection with Lilker.
| Oct 4, 2022
Rental property owners want access to utility usage data for whole properties
As pressure from investors for ESG reporting mounts, owners of multifamily properties increasingly look to collect whole-building utility usage data.
| Oct 4, 2022
In dire need of affordable housing, Aspen, Colo. will get a development that provides 277 affordable homes
A few miles from downtown Aspen, Colo., a development will provide 277 new affordable homes for an area experiencing a dire affordable housing crisis.
Green | Oct 3, 2022
California regulators move to ban gas heaters for existing buildings
California regulators voted unanimously recently on a series of measures that include a ban on the sale of natural gas-powered heating and hot water systems beginning in 2030.
| Oct 3, 2022
The College of the Holy Cross completes a $110 million performing arts center
In Worcester, Mass., a one-hour drive from Boston, the College of the Holy Cross has completed its $110 million Prior Performing Arts Center.
Resiliency | Sep 30, 2022
Designing buildings for wildfire defensibility
Wold Architects and Engineers' Senior Planner Ryan Downs, AIA, talks about how to make structures and communities more fire-resistant.
| Sep 30, 2022
Manley Spangler Smith Architects partners with PBK in strategic merger
Manley Spangler Smith Architects (MSSA), a Georgia-based, full-service architectural firm specializing in educational and municipal facilities, announced today a significant development aimed at increasing its capabilities, expertise, and suite of services.
| Sep 30, 2022
Lab-grown bricks offer potential low-carbon building material
A team of students at the University of Waterloo in Canada have developed a process to grow bricks using bacteria.
| Sep 29, 2022
FitzGerald establishes Denver office
The new location bolsters FitzGerald’s nationwide reach and capitalizes on local expertise and boots-on-the-ground to serve new and existing clients seeking to do business in Denver and the Front Range, as well as the Southwest United States, California, and Texas.