As designers of education facilities, we consider people—students and faculty and those who support them—the focus of our work. 

Student life spaces must support increasingly collaborative, interactive, and technology-rich learning and teaching experiences. Flexible configurations allow education environments to be engaging and active, with the ability to scale up for lectures, whether in person or virtually, and break down into small groups to facilitate hands-on and team-based learning. Academic building design is about more than classrooms—it is about placemaking. It must facilitate efficient flow while providing informal spaces where students and faculty can socialize, collaborate, study, and work in a more relaxed setting. The spaces around and leading to education spaces, both within the building and outside, are equally important in defining and enabling learning. An academic building and its common spaces define the experience of students and faculty.