Schools In Focus Podcast

As K–12 schools gear up to return to in-person learning for the coming school year, one district already has a success under its belt. The Muskego-Norway School District in Muskego, Wis., successfully went in-person, five days a week, for the entire 2020–21 academic year. Our guest today is Tony Spence, the Chief Information Officer for that district. He takes a deep dive into explaining the logistics behind pulling off such a unique feat. He explains what went into creating the district's plan, committing to it and—most importantly—effectively communicating that plan to students, parents, staff and administrators.

Interior design plays a fundamental role in not only making education spaces functional, but also in creating a calm, soothing environment for students and faculty alike. Aesthetics—from color selection to layout—are crucial in helping schools re-emerge from the pandemic as safe spaces that promote emotional and psychological well-being. Here to shed further light on the topic are David Dembowitz and Royce Epstein from the Mohawk Group, and Rebekah Matheny from the Ohio State University. Today's episode is sponsored by Mohawk Group.

Maintaining indoor air quality has gained renewed importance as K–12 students around the country prepare to return to in-person learning full time. It's one of the timeliest, most important methods of keeping learning environments safe as the COVID pandemic winds down. And the more we learn, the more we refine and revise what we thought we knew. Our guest is Scott Huffmaster, the commercial HVAC leader for indoor air quality for North America for Trane Technologies, Inc. This episode is sponsored by Trane.

K–12 schools and colleges issue ID cards to students, faculty, staff, and sometimes even visitors to campus. The logistics of creating and printing these cards—especially Smart Cards with technical capabilities—are more complicated than you might think. From processing times to personalization, and from software streamlining to printer hardware selection, educational institutions have a lot of factors to be mindful of before committing to a solution. Here to break down the process are Senior Product Marketing Manager Mike Mans and Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives David O'Driscoll, both with HID Global. Sponsored by HID Global.

When it comes to designing an educational facility, there's no such thing as "one size fits all." There's a lot that goes into creating the strategic master plan for a school. Here to tell us more about that design process, both generally and specifically, is Elie Newman, Senior Principal at BNKC Architects, based in Toronto, Canada.

This episode's guests are Timothy Nyblom, Director of End User Business Development for Higher Education with HID Global, and Jeremy Fromm, Mercury Security Evangelist, with Mercury Security. They're here to talk about building access control in K–12 and higher education institutions. They'll walk us through the benefits of using an open-architecture system, as well as some of the necessary technical aspects and how they fit within the larger vertical. This episode is sponsored by HID Global.

This episode's guest is Tim Nyblom, the Director of End User Business Development in Higher Education for HID Global. Today, we'll be talking about mobile ID card issuance on higher-education campuses and the process of transition from physical to electronic student IDs. We'll cover the benefits of mobile IDs for both students and administrators; how mobile access credentials enhance campus security and advance sustainability goals; common barriers and obstacles toward adoption; and the journey that institutions take as they implement the change. This episode is sponsored by HID Global.

On this episode of Schools in Focus, we'll talk about the role that classroom furniture plays in creating adaptive, flexible learning spaces. Our guest is Wesley Edmonds, the Director of Workplace, Adaptive Solutions at OFS. We'll talk about how layering furniture selection into the initial design phase can help maximize a facility's square footage and student interaction. We'll also discuss how different pieces meet different needs, from collaboration and active learning to quiet study spaces. We'll touch on designing for neurodiversity, the impact of design thinking on quote-unquote "fixing education," and a couple specific case studies that put these theories into practice. This episode of Schools in Focus is sponsored by ROOM.

One way schools and universities can mitigate the COVID-19 risk is to utilize their HVAC systems to circulate clean fresh air. In this episode, Mike Wolf, Director of Regulatory Affairs at Greenheck, and Ron Wendorski, Director of the Bernard A. Greenheck Education Center, talk about indoor air quality in classrooms. They explain how foundational technologies like increased air ventilation and filtration can help reduce the spread of COVID-19. They also explain how additive technologies like ultraviolet technology and bipolar ionization can help. We also discuss cost-effective ways to improve HVAC systems and the long-term benefits of indoor air quality.

Ishita Banerjii, project architect at Hollis + Miller, discusses Kansas State University's new multicultural student center. The building, dedicated to advance student diversity, features various gathering spaces like dance studios, huddle rooms, and a commercial kitchen. We discuss the vision behind the center, how the team incorporated feedback from numerous student groups, and the significance of having a multicultural student center on campus in the Midwest.

Turan Duda and Jeff Paine, founding principals of Duda|Paine Architects, discuss how architectural design is shifting to better address the mental and physical health needs of students. They talk about destigmatizing health centers, creating a welcoming, comfortable space with choice, the use of natural materials, and the importance of prevention in student wellness.

If a shooting happened on your campus, do you know what to do? In this episode, we speak to Tom Saccenti, a former campus police chief and security expert, about active shooter response planning in schools. We discuss the first thing schools should do when forming a response plan, the importance of knowing the school's layout and ensuring there is a parent-student reunification plan.

Belinda Oakley, CEO of Chartwells K12 and Seth Ferriell, CEO of SSC Services for Education talk about school food service during a pandemic. We discuss various models of food service to accommodate social distancing such as lunch in classrooms and take home meal kits; keeping cafeterias and classrooms clean; sustainable options to combat the increase of paper and plastic; and innovation in the K-12 food service industry.

Stu Rothenberger, who leads DLR Group's Global Higher Education Studio, and his team talked to over 85 higher ed institutions and discussed their concerns and questions about reopening in the fall. Stu shared some of their findings with Schools In Focus and how DLR Group is rethinking higher ed spaces in the process. We discussed flexibility on a campus scale, the need for long-term resiliency plans, tackling equity issues, and creating smaller interaction spaces in a post-COVID19 learning environment.

As schools across the country figure out how to safely reopen schools, we wonder: how will COVID-19 impact school design? Senior editor Yvonne Marquez discusses with Sylvia Kowalk and Robin Randall from Legat Architects on what changes we might see as schools reopen. They discuss design options available to schools now that can help with social distancing in facilities, what we can learn from other countries who have already reopened, and the long-term impacts of COVID-19 to educational environments. 

In this episode, we talk about the short-term and long-term goals of keeping school facilities clean amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Greg Whiteley — a specialist in cleaning science, hygiene and disinfection — describes how the virus works and how it affects children. He also outlines cleaning goals for the next year and provides practical advice for custodial workers. 

Senior Editor Yvonne Marquez interviews Todd Ferking, a principal at DLR Group about education design trends to watch in 2020 and beyond. Collaborative commons, makerspaces, emerging technologies, flipped classrooms, research-based design and more!  Music by Joseph McDade

In the first episode of Schools In Focus podcast, Senior Editor Yvonne Marquez interviews Andrew Hausmann, an associate principal at Perkins and Will. They speak about Shanghai American School's library transformation, its role as a central hub on campus, and how creativity and imagination were key to the space design.  Schools In Focus is a Spaces4Learning podcast dedicated to K-12 school design, planning, and management.   Music by Joseph McDade. 

This episode's guest is Devin Bowman, General Manager of Technical Glass Products (TGP) and AD Systems. We'll talk about the relationship between school architecture and designing for safety as design aspects like natural light and floor-to-ceiling windows become more common. We'll discuss how to give your school's glass surfaces varying levels of protection to keep students safe. And we'll also talk about TGP's work with an elementary school in Oregon that focused on improving the building's safety and security features. This episode is sponsored by Technical Glass Products.

This episode's guest is Michael Dunn, Technical Sales Manager for Energy Saving Ceilings & PCM at Armstrong World Industries. He's here to talk about how Phase Change Material (PCM) can help provide energy savings in schools. You'll learn why many K­–12 schools are on the hunt for a new HVAC solution and the practical applications of PCM ceiling panels in regulating temperature without driving up energy costs. He'll also share the results of the case study at a New Hampshire high school that demonstrated the technology's effectiveness. This episode is sponsored by Armstrong World Industries.