Report from the National Summit on School Design

Report from the National Summit on School Design
Schools in the 21st century should feature more diverse learning environments, greater technology and be more integrated with their communities, recommends a new report on school design issued today by the American Architectural Foundation (AAF) and KnowledgeWorks Foundation.

The 70-page Report from the National Summit on School Design provides recommendations to help designers and educators make better decisions about some of the $30 billion spent annually on new or renovated school facilities.

In recognizing the historic opportunity created by a multi-billion dollar national school construction boom, the report states that American education is at a "watershed moment in school design" when "the definition of the American school is evolving into something entirely new."

"We have moved beyond the one-size fits all approach to school design to an age of greater innovation and flexibility tailored to meet the needs of individual students, schools and communities," said Ronald E. Bogle, president and CEO, of the American Architectural Foundation.

"The successful schools of the future need to apply the research on how students learn and how the quality of our educational facilities affects student performance, health, safety, self-esteem and well-being."